Loss Of Net Neutrality Could Have Grave Consequences

It is imperative that more people educate themselves about net neutrality so the Internet can remain the mythical gift from above that it has been.

Most people utilize the Internet in some form. Hours can be spent online watching YouTube, Tweeting or researching an essay subject on Wikipedia. The Internet has come a long way since the days of god-awful dial-up, and smartphones can do more than a late ‘90s PC.

With the Internet being such a hot commodity, there are countless Internet service providers (ISPs) claiming to have the best or fastest service. Having great, fast service is important, but it brings up the issue of what is acceptable for these providers to do to make their services efficient.

This brings up the topic of net neutrality. Dictionary.com defines net neutrality as the principle that Internet service providers and governments should treat all data on the Internet equally. Simply put, this means an ISP cannot make certain aspects of the Internet slower than others for its own benefit.

A good example of what life would be like without net neutrality would be modern cable TV. After the passing of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, big companies such as Time Warner, Comcast and COX gained the power to buy out and take control of smaller telecommunications companies so their own power could not be diminished. Another result of the act is certain channels are only available to certain providers and other channels are only available to those willing to pay extra money. Additionally, providers could start demanding more money from channels to have their shows broadcast.

The Internet itself is much more vast than TV. Because of that, there are way more opportunities for ISPs to take advantage of a lack of net neutrality. In fact, this has already happened in the past.

Last year, the ISP Comcast demanded more money from Netflix, or else they would slow down the Internet speed of their customers attempting to stream movies from Netflix. At first, Netflix refused to pay the increased fees, but after Comcast did indeed slow down their service, Netflix was bullied into paying the fees to avoid losing customers.

According to a June 9 Forbes article, TV show host and comedian John Oliver took such offense to this event and other transgressions against net neutrality that he went on a rant criticizing not only Comcast and other ISPs but also the FCC. Oliver stressed that Internet commenters should voice their opposition to unregulated Internet on the FCC’s website, and the resulting traffic was so vast it caused the FCC’s servers to crash.

Unfortunately, there is still much confusion over the topic of net neutrality. This is best exemplified by a recent tweet made by Texas senator Ted Cruz. Cruz tweeted that net neutrality was “Obamacare for the Internet.” Let’s ignore the fact that, according to a March 11 Consumerist article, Cruz accepted campaign funds from telecommunications lobbyists last year. Cruz has shown that he is too dense to actually know what net neutrality is all about. Matthew Inman, creator of the satirical website The Oatmeal, found Cruz’s tweet so amusing he took the time to create an entire page directed at Cruz explaining what net neutrality is and how Cruz was wrong in his explanation.

President Obama recommended Nov. 10 that the FCC classify Internet service as a telecommunications service to preserve net neutrality. I firmly support his stance on net neutrality. However, the push for net neutrality ultimately comes down to support from the masses.

Those seeking to voice their support for net neutrality can do so by visiting sites such as savetheinternet.com where they can learn more about net neutrality and where they are given options to make their voices heard. From commenting on the FCC website to just simply writing letters to members of congress, there are many ways to get one’s voice heard.

If net neutrality is not reached, then we might not be able to procrastinate on Netflix anymore without paying for premium Internet service first, and I, for one, cannot give up my Parks and Recreation binge watching. 

By Hunter Larzelere is an Opinions Columnist with the University Star where this story originally published. It is reprinted here through a news partnership between the University Star and the San Marcos Corridor News | @CorridorNews | @Corridor_Sports