regulators say at&t <u+2019>s free-data offering for directv violates net neutrality rules. but come january, the regulators may be out the door and those rules may be under threat. last thursday, at&t received a letter from the federal communications commission saying its practice of exempting its own video-streaming service from data-usage caps may violate net-neutrality rules. at&t has until nov. 21 to respond, and analysts say the fcc is likely to issue a final ruling halting the offering over the next couple months. but the election of donald trump last week has thrown the agency<u+2019>s willingness to uphold such a ruling into the air. that makes at&t<u+2019>s position the most visible example of the speculation and uncertainty brewing over mr. trump<u+2019>s stance on net neutrality <u+2014>the signature issue of the obama fcc. most republicans strongly oppose the agency<u+2019>s net-neutrality rules, which reclassified broadband internet service as a utility. and the market is betting that the trump administration will appoint an fcc chairman who shares that view. shares of comcast have climbed 8.2% since mr. trump<u+2019>s victory, while shares of facebook , netflix and amazon.com <u+2014>internet companies that rely on access to broadband pipes<u+2014>have fallen 6.8%, 9.7% and 8.8%, respectively. but mr. trump has yet to lay out a clearly defined view of telecom policy. and while he has decried what he perceives as overregulation in some areas of government, he said last month his administration would block at&t<u+2019>s proposed deal to buy time warner . <u+201c>i think he<u+2019>ll be a pro-business republican with a populist tinge,<u+201d> said paul gallant, a regulatory analyst at cowen. <u+201c>but right now, you don<u+2019>t know where the populism is going to show up.<u+201d> companies are hoping a trump administration at least ends some of the uncertainty that have surrounded the rules since they were issued. the current fcc said it would evaluate so-called zero-rating of data on a case-by-case basis to determine whether it complied with the rules. it apparently decided at&t<u+2019>s plan to remove data caps for subscribers to its planned $35-a-month internet-tv service crossed a line, but it hasn<u+2019>t challenged similar offerings at comcast or verizon communications . still, even a cooperative trump fcc might need to formally approve at&t<u+2019>s data plan after last week<u+2019>s letter, a move likely to lead to outcry from internet companies and public interest groups. for telecom companies, the trump card is still a wild card.
at&t: first test for trump on net neutrality  - wsj
miriam gottfried