The internet as we know it — open and free, is about to become a thing of the past. Chairman Wheeler, head of the Federal Communications Commission, is seemingly doing everything he can to hand over the rights of control of the internet’s traffic speed to internet service providers. And while the final verdict is yet to arrive, Microsoft, Google, Amazon and other tech giants have joined hands to take a stand against FCC on its stance over net neutrality.
One key rule of the internet is that all the web traffic – whether it is access to an mp3 file, web page, or some bittorrent data, should be equally treated. But, now this decades old understanding could go some amendment. Last month, a news broke that FCC is considering to introduce “fast-lanes” which will permit your internet service provider – Verizon, Comcast to throttle up/down your access to a particular website, content or service.
The companies signed an open letter to the FCC, in which they expressed their support for a free and open internet. “We write to express our support for a free and open internet. Over the past twenty years, American innovators have created countless Internet-based applications, content offerings, and services that are used around the world. These innovations have created enormous value for Internet users, fueled economic growth, and made our Internet companies global leaders. The innovation we have seen to date happened in a world without discrimination. An open Internet has also been a platform for free speech and opportunity for billions of users,” the letter reads. You can read the entire letter here.
This open letter doesn’t guarantee anything, and it is certainly not enough. You need to step up and call your congress member to do their share to help save the internet.
Further reading: Microsoft, Net Neutrality
