In an Internet far far away...

About a year before the general election last November, then Senator Obama pledged his support to promote net neutrality . Because the economic climate is in such shambles, we have heard little from Washington or the administration about the FCC or net neutrality. But, those of us in media land are still expecting him to make good on his promises. So I’m wondering the following question: When will formal net neutrality rules finally come?

The question comes down to whether Congress or the FCC will act first. It’s a given that Congress is a very slow entity. But the FCC doesn’t adapt as quickly as Facebook does. And there are concerns that the FCC doesn’t have the regulatory authority to pass a net neutrality act. But, Obama's pick for Chairman, fellow Harvard Law Review staffer Julius Genachowski, seems like a man who knows how to operate in a fast paced digital business world. Having formerly worked for the FCC under Clinton, he already knows the Commission well enough to avoid having to work against a learning curve. He has also been pegged as a strong net neutrality advocate by the good people at SaveTheInternet.com.

With that in mind, we should remember that he still hasn't been confirmed, and the way the Senate seems to be moving on Obama's other confirmations, I wouldn't expect Genachowski to have his name stenciled on the door of his office before Memorial Day. If, assuming he filed he’s legit and is confirmed within the next few weeks, I imagine we’ll see negotiation with the industry through the summer and something tangible by Halloween. This type of regulation takes a long time to draft and institute and there are a number of competing interests here.

Of course, John Boehner doesn’t believe the FCC has the right to regulate Net Neutrality at all. Judging at how effective he and his colleagues in the Senate have been at controlling the dialogue in Washington, I imagine that he could hold this up for a year or more, at the very least.

Let’s just hope Mr. Genachowski has done his taxes correctly.