VoIP (Voice over IP) pioneer Jeff Pulver understands,  as well as anyone, that the heavy hand of government can stifle innovation, investment, and disruption. He spent years advocating against Title II to protect Internet voice services from crippling, monopoly-style regulations. In our third episode of TechFreedomTV, Jeff Pulver sits down with TechFreedom President Berin Szoka to discuss his history with VoIP and the dangers of Title II regulation.

On regulating the Internet like a public utility? “I am totally against trying to take old laws and apply them to new tricks,” said VoIP pioneer Jeff Pulver. “[And] I just don’t want to have to come back [to Washington] and say ‘I told you so,’ because, frankly, a life without Snapchat, without Facetime, without Skype, is a life that’s going to be a lot more challenging than we have today.”

Pulver also had some harsh words for the so-called “consumer groups” pushing Title II, calling them the “ultimate puppeteers in Washington.” He continues, “They’re using their bully pulpit for business purposes and they’re trying to extract out blood from a stone for their own benefit only. They don’t care about anyone else; they care about themselves.”

Click here to watch the full interview.

ICYMI: Catch TechFreedomTV #2, “The Great Net Neutrality Debate,” featuring Marvin Ammori, Jonathan Baker, Hal Singer and our own Berin Szoka. And watch TechFreedomTV #1, “Unfinished Business,” where a panel of experts tackle the toughest questions in tech policy facing the next Congress.

Szoka can be reached for comment at media@techfreedom.org, and see our other work on on net neutrality, Title II, and broadband competition, including:

About TechFreedom:

TechFreedom is a non-profit, non-partisan technology policy think tank. We work to chart a path forward for policymakers towards a bright future where technology enhances freedom, and freedom enhances technology.

 

</>