I'm not that clear on how US politics and 'lobbying' works, but why don't you just call it what it is - a bribe? In this case 200 families will be back to slow speeds and poor service ISP (who no doubt will be putting their prices up) just because said ISP has enough spare cash to bribe the politicians. How is that fair?
It's not even a bribe when constantly give donation but threaten to stop them if the legislator doesn't follow your wishes [0]. The DOJ was petitioned to investigate but refused to even look into it, so, (by fiat, or rather lack of it) it is legal.
[0] http://www.zdnet.com/article/chris-dodd-and-the-mpaa-bribery...
* This news organization chooses to report all political donations that appear one step away from quid pro quo as "bribes"
Or maybe a new word should be made up that is given a dirty connotation like "bribe" but one that keeps lawsuits further at bay.
in reality, antitrust provisions really need to kick in. even in nyc, time warner dominates and has local monopolies in many buildings.