Comcast Tells FCC It’s Just Too Hard To Explain Its Bullshit Broadband And TV Fees To Consumers

For the better part of the decade, the generally feckless FCC has been trying to require that broadband ISPs be a little more honest about broadband fees and limits at the point of sale. The FCC has been pondering implementing a nutrition label for broadband" for years but could never quite get around to it. The infrastructure bill demanded it, so the FCC finally got around to acting.

But big ISPs like Comcast, as usual, are dragging their feet. The cable giant recently told the FCC that it was just too difficult to itemize out all the bullshit fees it uses to pad your bill at the point of sale.

From usage caps to its infamous broadcast TV surcharge," the cable giant uses all manner of bogus charges to advertise you one rate, then charge you something else. One Consumer Reports study found that the cable industry makes an estimated $28 billion a year from bogus fees, which they calculated can drive up the advertised price by as much as 24 percent.

Obviously Comcast doesn't want this gravy train going away, but consumer advocates are clearly unimpressed by this latest delay tactic:

The label hasn't even reached consumers yet, but Comcast is already trying to create loopholes. This request would allow the big ISPs to continue hiding the true cost of service and frustrating customers with poor service. Congress created the label to end these practices, not maintain them, and Comcast offers no compelling reason for the FCC to violate Congress' intent."

Keep in mind the FCC is doing the absolute bare minimum here. They're not banning ISPs and cable companies from ripping you off, they're just politely asking that the broadband industry be slightly transparent about their fees. And despite turning the FCC into a feckless invertebrate on consumer protection over the last seven years, industry can't even do the bare minimum.

More generally, whether telecom, hotels, or airlines, U.S. regulators have made it clear that they're ok with giant corporations ripping you off with spurious surcharges provided they're just moderately clever about it. Even here, when the government is finally prodded to action after decades of apathy, the end result at best winds up being slightly more transparency.