Dave Burstein, reporting for GigaOM, said that two FCC Commissioners were overheard discussing Frontier’s decision to cap its customers at 5GB of usage per month at an FCC hearing in Washington.

The Federal Communications Commission has taken an interest in the broadband industry and reviewing its competitiveness and service, particularly to underserved rural areas. They are also concerned about net neutrality – where large Internet Service Providers can offer preferential treatment to their partners with faster backbone speeds, exemptions from usage caps, and more prominent placement of their content.

Burstein reports, “Frontier in 2007 had capital spending of $315,793 which seems like a lot until you note their Depreciation expense was $374,435. [A] five gigabyte [cap] is so low even a 2002 style network can handle it, but not maintaining the network is going to hurt them and their customers.”

Other stories of interest:

1. Frontier Usage Cap: “A Response to Illegal Resellers”
2. Frontier Quietly Imposes 5GB Usage Cap on DSL Customers