Powell’s leaving is an enormous loss
Politics aside, the resignation of Michael Powell as FCC Chairman is a blow to downstream thinking in the U.S., and I’m personally frightened by the prospects of who might come after him. For all the weeping and gnashing of teeth done about his “national nanny” role in issuing record fines for indecency charges, Powell was a rare person in power who really understood the nature of the Internet and its business opportunities.
Here are my two favorite Powell quotes:
“Application separation is the most important paradigm shift in the history of communications, and it will change things forever.”“I have no problem if a big and venerable company no longer exists tomorrow, as long as that value is transferred somewhere else in the economy.“
I think those of us in the Internet world will miss him. A status quo proponent in that seat will be trouble for progress, to say nothing of what’ll happen in the battle for free speech.Thank you, Michael, for your efforts on behalf of innovation.
