Dec. 17--Federal regulators are looking into new offerings, such as T-Mobile's Binge On, that exempt video and other services from data caps to determine whether they violate new rules for Internet traffic.
Tom Wheeler, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, said Thursday the agency sent letters to T-Mobile, AT and Comcast asking for informal meetings to discuss "some of the innovative things they are doing."
"This is not an investigation. This is not any enforcement," he told reporters after the agency's monthly meeting.
The letters were sent Wednesday, and the companies were asked to make employees available by Jan. 15.
Wheeler said the goal is for FCC officials to stay aware of innovative services in the wake of the agency's tough new net-neutrality regulations, which are designed to ensure the uninhibited flow of Internet content.
Those controversial rules, which took effect in June and are being challenged in court, prohibit Internet service providers from discriminating against legal content flowing through their networks.
Some consumer advocates and other critics have raised concerns about so-called zero-rating and sponsored-data plans, which exempt select content from counting against customer data limits.
Such plans could hinder innovation by giving preference to certain content providers.
Binge On was unveiled last month with great fanfare by T-Mobile Chief Executive John Legere at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. The service allows customers to watch as much video on their mobile devices as they want from Netflix, Hulu, HBO, ESPN and about 20 other providers.
