WASHINGTON — The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission called for more aggressive action to keep online traffic moving freely, proposing two new government policies on Monday to prevent telecommunications companies from restricting websites and other Internet services.
The two new FCC rules would govern how Internet service providers such as AT&T Inc. and Time Warner Cable Inc. manage their networks, enshrining “network neutrality” into the agency’s policy.
Under the proposal from FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, network operators would be prohibited from discriminating against the type of data traveling through their systems and would have to be clear about how they manage their networks.
The rules would apply to Internet access no matter how it is delivered — over coaxial cable, fiber-optic lines or wirelessly on mobile devices.
“The rise of serious challenges to the free and open Internet puts us at a crossroads. We could see . . . free flow of information compromised,” he said Monday.
