Professor Barbara van Schewick is quoted in this Wall Street Journal article on Sprint’s video speed policy for unlimited-data customers and how it’s “at odds” with the FCC’s net neutrality rules. 

Sprint Corp. said it would end a policy of slowing video speeds for unlimited-data customers, after an outcry over the practice undermined the carrier’s attempt to promote a new phone plan Tuesday.

The company said it has engaged in practice known as throttling for two years, but only recently began disclosing it more prominently after the U.S. implemented new net-neutrality rules that took effect June 12.

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Stanford University law professor Barbara van Schewick said the just-scrapped policy of slowing video traffic seemed clearly at odds with the FCC’s net-neutrality rules. Throttling for network management is only acceptable at times when the network is actually congested and the throttling must not discriminate against certain types of online activity, she said. Throttling streaming video creates a disadvantage for those services, she said.

“If I’m the only one on the cell site there is no reason to limit me to 600 kilobits per second,” she said. “I am really surprised that Sprint is engaging in this.”