Verizon's mobile video won't count against data caps - but NetFlix does [telecom]

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Verizon Wireless tests limit of net neutrality rules by zero-rating own data.

by Jon Brodkin

Verizon Wireless is testing the limits of the Federal Communications Commission's net neutrality rules after announcing that it will exempt its own video service from mobile data caps - while counting data from competitors such as YouTube and Netflix against customers' caps.

The only way for companies to deliver data to Verizon customers without counting against their data caps is to pay the carrier, something no major rival video service has chosen to do. While data cap exemptions are not specifically outlawed by the FCC's net neutrality rules, the FCC is examining these arrangements to determine whether they should be stopped under the commission's so-called "general conduct standard." The FCC is already looking into data cap exemptions - also known as zero-rating - implemented by Comcast, AT&T, and T-Mobile USA.