When the Federal Trade Commission came out against net neutrality in late June, it was a victory for the telecom and cable companies, but the war is still far from decided.

After major rumblings last year, the issue hasn’t been on the congressional front burner much in 2007, but that could easily change with congressional and presidential elections coming up next year.  

Democrats will be looking to get legislation passed that helps them increase their slender leads in both houses and recapture the White House in 2008, but they may shy away from touchy subjects like Social Security, immigration and the like. With their strong roots in everything from activism to fundraising using the Web, Democrats may make a push to get a provision that would bar phone and cable companies from charging additional fees to Internet content companies seeking premium trafficking speeds and top-level service passed before November 2008.

An afternoon panel Tech Confidential’s Converge 2.0 conference will delve into what the Democrat-controlled Congress’ actions could mean for the broadband business plans of the phone and cable companies. —George White

See the FTC's statement on Net Neutrality
See Getting to Know Net Neutrality post
See Convergence 2.0 conference