Running and Passing.

What is Net Neutrality? Net Neutrality is the guiding principle that preserves the free and open Internet. Net Neutrality simply means no discrimination. Net Neutrality prevents Internet providers from blocking, speeding up or slowing down Web content based on its source, ownership or destination.

Corporate interests aim to gain lawful control over the Internet access and bandwidth they provide to customers. Cable and phone company lobbyists are pushing to block legislation that would reinstate Net Neutrality. AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and Time Warner Cable actively oppose the tenets of Net Neutrality. While content and service providers such as Google, Amazon, Yahoo, eBay, and Skype are all in favor of a neutral playing field for their services. The debate is controversial and complex.

Some analysts proclaim that non-interference (no neutrality) can be the best form of regulation. Arguing that ISP’s will have to be more upfront in informing customers about traffic management, data limits, etc. The argument is that competition, rather than technical regulation,  is the consumer’s best guardian against “bottlenecks and monopolistic gatekeepers” . However, broadband competition among ISPs is solely lacking in many major US markets and can be virtually non-existent in suburban or rural areas. I’ve also heard arguments that Net Neutrality will stifle job creation and hamper the efficiency of the market, but would a corporate net not present the possibility of closed networks with limited access and the potential for censorship?

This leads me to questions where the FCC’s recently announced National Broadband Plan will fit into the mix. If the government is coordinating and funding the expansion/upgrade of the national broadband infrastructure, how can we allow corporate interests to have control over that network?

On the flip side, is giving the FCC power to impose neutrality and thus micromanage the Internet a viable alternative? The private sector has built an expansive network and in the past decade per megabit broadband prices have fallen significantly. Broadband adoption rates continue to rise. Would a government takeover/control dissuade private investment? Do we risk entangling the Internet, technology, and communication companies in red tape and litigation?

What is the true spawn of a non-neutral net? Do the potential pitfalls of regulation warrant Government intervention? Corporate control or government control? Wag the dog?

For more information, I recommend checking out the EFF’s Net Neutrality page.

You have until Thursday, July 15th to file a comment with the FCC. Visit their Electronic Comment Filing System and leave a comment on Docket 09-191 (In the Matter of Preserving the Open Internet Broadband Industry Practices).

Stay vigilant.