What Is Net Neutrality? Strong Rules That Protect Internet Users Are Jeopardized by Proposed Change
Net neutrality, simply put, is being able to use the internet to share and browse content without discrimination. It has always been how the internet works, but this freedom has recently been put in jeopardy.
The term first came to much public attention in April after the current chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Ajit Pai, announced plans that could potentially eliminate net neutrality. And on May 18, the FCC has reportedly voted for this plan to move forward.
This would make compliance to the established net neutrality rules voluntary and could, in effect, jeopardize the open internet as it is. Losing net neutrality will then give internet service providers (ISP) like AT&T, Comcast, and Verizon, the power to decide who is heard and who is shut out. Blocking website content and applications can easily and legally be done in order to block out a competition and further another company's business.
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Net neutrality was put in place during the George W. Bush administration in order keep major broadband providers from blocking content or allowing faster delivery to companies with more money to spend. The policy gained bipartisan support and has since been sheltering bloggers, nonprofit organizations, smaller tech companies, television and music streamers, as well as entrepreneurs from falling under ISP control.
Without these rules, larger and wealthier companies can buy priority access to their sites and services, thus beating smaller companies and their start-up services from the race before any competition can even begin. Without net neutrality, ISPs can also charge online services in order to connect to consumers, and this additional cost will ultimately fall on the consumer's monthly bill.
Recently, fourteen people claiming to have had their names and addresses used for anti-net neutrality comments have sent a letter to Pai, asking for the removal of the fraudulent comments posted on the public docket.
"Whoever is behind this stole our names and addresses, publicly exposed our private information without our permission, and used our identities to file a political statement we did not sign onto. Hundreds of thousands of other Americans may have been victimized, too," the letter said.
Fight for the Future, the net neutrality activist group who coordinated the letter, has also set up a website for those who would like to check the FCC net neutrality docket for their names.
