Federal Trade Commission (FTC) chairwoman Deborah Platt Majoras promised last year to continue consumer protection work by, for example, holding Internet service providers (ISPs) accountable for any false or deceptive representations to consumers concerning the nature of the Internet access provided. That promise could begin to come to fruition later this week when the FTC holds two days of workshops that would expand its looking into of business practices on the Internet. Consumer advocates are optimistic that the FTC will look closely at how ISPs advertise broadband service by telling consumers that, for a particular monthly fee, they can gain access to the Internet at speeds described as up to, and to then make a claim regarding speed. The up to problem is real because it creates an expectation in the consumer that the maximum is the norm, but the fine print in the service terms do not promise any minimum. When asked how subscribers can establish what broadband speeds they really get, AT&T and Verizon said they provide customers with programs that can check connection speeds at any point in a session. All the providers interviewed also tell customers to call technical service if they think they might not be getting the correct speeds. Among topics covered is the action taken by one broadband service user when his connection slowed down to dial-up modem speed and how that experience showed the user just how unreliable up to claims are.