A couple of months ago, I called up my phone service provider to change the billing name on the account. Because I have another company's Internet service on the phone line, I was told I could not change the billing name unless I closed the Internet account. The requirement didn't make sense to me at first–after all, the phone number/service would not change, so what difference could it make to the phone company that it is being paid for under a different name?

Oh, sometimes I can be so na?ve. It subsequently did dawn on me at least part of the intent behind creating this hitch may be to see whether the phone company could cross-sell Internet service to me, too–a manipulation that left a bad taste.

While initially these thoughts were just my gut talking, I recently came across an Associated Press story that focused on a vote pending by the Federal Communications Commission. The proposal related to whether the FCC ought to begin drafting regulations to prohibit broadband providers from favoring or discriminating against Internet traffic.

This opens a much broader debate. According to AP, the broadband providers and their supporters argue if they are sinking big bucks into their networks, they have the right to handle them as they see fit, and regulation could put a damper on system enhancements or expansion.

The FCC's chairman, however, wants to adopt the same principles that have guided the FCC's enforcement of communications laws, AP indicates, which allow subscribers to access all legal online content, applications, and services. He also wants to be sure broadband providers cannot discriminate against particular content or applications. Following such guidelines, the FCC reportedly ordered Comcast to stop blocking subscribers from using a particular online file-sharing service. Comcast now has taken this to court.

Between the two arguments, the AP article notes a pragmatic reality: the control broadband providers need to ensure one high-bandwidth app doesn't overwhelm other apps, such as e-mail or online searches–the kind of stuff insurers and their customers rely on.

Perhaps the answer lies in establishing a greater level of transparency among the broadband providers to ascertain where the respective lines in the sand legitimately ought to be. From the user's point of view, stymied innovation (for more on innovation, specifically related to insurance IT, see p. 14) is just as undesirable as market manipulation.

It's likely to take years to sort all this out. As for me, for now I've left the phone account as is–it isn't worth the hassle. But by raising roadblocks, the phone service provider has risked losing my business–if forced to close my Internet service account and reopen one, maybe it is time to take another look at phone service providers, too. Wonder whether the company thought about that?