There are countless reasons why we should demand that net neutrality remain the law. starting by the fact that we all would like to be able to access internet without having certain companies content shoved down our throats. Here we bring you a few of our favorite arguments from across the web that truly show why net neutrality is so important.
“Without net neutrality, the incumbents who provide access to the Internet would be able to
pick winners or losers in the market. They could impede traffic from our services in order
to favor their own services or established competitors. Or they could impose new tolls on
us, inhibiting consumer choice. Those actions directly impede an entrepreneur’s ability to
“start a business, immediately reach a worldwide customer base, and disrupt an entire
industry.” Our companies should be able to compete with incumbents on the quality of our
products and services, not our capacity to pay tolls to Internet access providers.
Fortunately, in 2015 the Federal Communications Commission put in place light touch net
neutrality rules that not only prohibit certain harmful practices, but also allow the
Commission to develop and enforce rules to address new forms of discrimination. We are
concerned by reports that you would replace this system with a set of minimum voluntary
commitments, which would give a green light for Internet access providers to discriminate
in unforeseen ways.”
Read the rest of the letter here.
“Internet service providers challenged that decision [the 2015 FCC regulations], saying they weren’t opposed to the rules themselves but rejected the dramatic expansion of FCC authority over the Internet. They argued that the tighter regulations rooted in a 1934 legal statute would stifle innovation and threaten investment by the industry.
The three-judge panel at the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, however, ruled that the FCC did have the proper authority to reclassify broadband Internet under the Title II of the Telecommunications Act.”
Read the rest of the news article here.
“The questions raised in discussions of open access and network neutrality are basic to both telecommunications and innovation policy. The promotion of network neutrality is no different than the challenge of promoting fair evolutionary competition in any privately-owned environment, whether a telephone network, operating system, or even a retail store. Government regulation in such contexts invariably tries to help ensure that the short-term interests of the owner do not prevent the best products or applications becoming available to end-users. The same interest animates the promotion of network neutrality: preserving a Darwinian competition among every conceivable use of the Internet so that the only the best survive.”
Read the rest of the paper here.
“Q.
What’s the problem?
A.
Most people get their high-speed internet access from only a few telecommunications giants —AT&T, Comcast, Cox, CenturyLink, Charter, and Verizon. When we send or receive data over the internet, we expect those companies to transfer that data from one end of the network to the other. Period. We don’t expect them to analyze or manipulate it. And starting in 2015, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has had protections in place to prevent broadband providers from doing just that. But now, the Trump FCC is moving to do away with those protections.”
Read the rest of their answers to FAQs here.
“Why should marketers care?… Equal footing for web access creates a more even playing field. It allows websites to compete with each other without having to pay and without having to only serve different consumers who may be paying different rates to their ISPs.
It also means more players, because anyone can enter the field. Simply by registering a website and hosting it, you’re now on an even playing field technically with everyone, with Google, with Facebook, with Microsoft, with Amazon. You get the same access, at least at the fundamental ISP level, with everyone else on the Internet. That means there’s a lot more demand for competitive web marketing services, because there are many more businesses who need to compete and who can compete.”
Read the rest of the Moz article here.
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO SUPPORT NET NEUTRALITY?
Visit Freepress’ Save the Internet website. You can learn more about the net neutrality issue, sign a petition to policymakers, and call your senators to encourage them to uphold the regulations.
If you agree that net neutrality should be upheld as the law of the land, and that internet service providers shouldn’t be allowed operate without this oversight – share the issue far and wide! Encourage others to reach out to their local senators. Make your voice heard.
