So, I was flipping through ArsTechnica yesterday and saw their article about a survey being run around the Senate Commerce Committee regarding Net Neutrality. From the article:
The poll also found that many Americans have no idea what net neutrality is, or why they should care; only 7 percent said that they had even heard or seen anything about net neutrality. When pollsters introduced the concept to poll takers, they described it solely as “enhancing Internet neutrality by barring high speed internet providers from offering specialized services like faster speed and increased security for a fee.” When presented this way, 19 percent of respondents said that net neutrality was more important to them than “delivering the benefits of new TV and video choice,” which received a 66 percent backing.
Now, since I know the majority of you don’t know what Net Neutrality is, let me give you the Wikipedia definition:
The phrase Network Neutrality was coined by Columbia University law professor Tim Wu to describe networks that don’t favor some classes of application (for example the World Wide Web) over others (such as online gaming or Voice over IP).
You can read the full article for further information, and there are plenty of news articles around, but here’s the key: Net Neutrality is essential for keeping the internet as it stands today. The legislation is built to allow internet providers to allot certain speeds to certain services.
Let me explain this as simply as I can. The internet is finite: there’s only so much of it. Right now, if I want, I’ve got access to 100% of the internet. If the internet was not “neutral,” as it is now, then companies like AT&T and Verizon could say: “hmmmm…let’s just allow Andy to use 20% of the internet and use the other 80% for whatever we want, like telephone and television services.” Or even better, “hey, why don’t we have Amazon and eBay pay extra so they can each have 10% of the internet, while forcing everyone else to use and share 20% between themselves.” Why is this bad? Well, because my internet will be slower, and any new companies would be forced to use that limited amount of it until they could afford the premium to venture into the rest of the ‘Net.
Essentially, using the “Information Superhighway” metaphor, it’s like letting big companies with their semis full of products drive across the country on I-70 with no speed limit, but forcing the entire US population to drive along Route 66 (including all the stoplights).
Net neutrality is an important issue. Perhaps not as important as gay rights and an illegitimate war, but important just the same. You need to vote in November so that the internet stays the way it is, rather than favoring the large corporations, thus stifling any and all creativity and competition.
I leave you with a quote from the guy running the Senate Commerce Committee, Ted Stevens:
“They want to deliver vast amounts of information over the internet. And again, the internet is not something you just dump something on. It’s not a truck. It’s a series of tubes.”
Seriously…this is they guy “leading the charge,” so to speak.
