Net Neutrality Finally Gets Attention
It's about time. The issue of equal access to Internet resources, known as Net Neutrality, is finally getting the media attention the issue deserves. For starters, the Washington Post ran a front page article on it this morning. The article describes Net Neutrality as:
a principle that bars Internet providers, primarily phone and cable companies, from charging higher rates to Web-based firms in return for giving their content priority treatment on the pathways to consumers. Without such restrictions, proponents say, a user might find it time-consuming, or even impossible, to call up a favorite site that carriers have relegated to slower lanes for economic or even philosophical reasons.
I'm all for the free market and innovation in services but I'm also not an island. I live and function in what is a growing community. Part of the fabric of any community is the ability to communicate and for that we depend increasingly on the Internet. No one should be able to manipulate the rules of the communication playing field to favor one party over another. Sure, some will say that telcos and other providers should be able to offer a variety of services, but conflicting interests are nothing new.
The history of the U.S. Supreme Court is a virtually a series of debates about balancing conflicting rights. In this case, we need to balance the social costs and benefits of Net Neutrality and without question, the benefits of Net Neutrality far out weigh the costs. Unpopular ideas from politically and economically insignificant individuals should be just as accessible as the latest press release from your favorite Internet provider. The importance of an idea is a function of its content, not where it comes from.
Individual states are already getting into the issue. In California, Net Neutrality legislation has recently been introduced by Assemblyman Mark Leno. From Brian Leubitz at Calitics, we hear:
The legislation will preserve the Internet as we know it- a driving force of economic innovation, a valuable research tool and a forum of free speech and civic involvement. Specifically, it will prevent companies that control the internet's infrastructure from discriminating against content based on its source or ownership.
Matt Stoller at MyDD points out that Maryland and Maine have similar legislation in the works.
This issue is more important than the paltry coverage would indicate but I'm sure we haven't heard the last of it yet.
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