Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, has called on Comcast to extend its net neutrality pledge,
The New York Times reports.
The Democrat, whose committee oversees mergers and antitrust cases, sent a letter to Comcast urging the cable giant to vow that it will never approve so-called fast lanes, also known as paid prioritization, on its network.
Comcast, which is aiming to take over Time Warner Cable, had previously agreed that it will not allow fast lanes through 2018.
Net neutrality prevents a practice whereby subscription channels like Netflix can pay service providers such as Comcast to get preferential treatment for its data on the network.
In his letter, Leahy asked Comcast to extend its ban on prioritization indefinitely "regardless of whether" the merger goes through.
"I ask Comcast to pledge that it will not engage in paid prioritization," he wrote. "These types of arrangements pose a significant threat of dividing the Internet into those who can afford to compete and those who cannot."
A spokeswoman for Comcast said the company was "reviewing the letter," according to the Times.
The Justice Department’s antitrust division and the Federal Communications Commission are currently investigating the potential antitrust issues involved in the Time Warner merger.
Comcast had originally agreed to a ban on fast lanes as a condition of the deal when it took over NBC Universal, the newspaper added.
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