This week, net neutrality has been in the news. The reason, people are scared that the end of net neutrality might mean internet providers could discriminate on certain websites. One website like Netflix might pay Cable One more money so their speeds are faster than the other websites, or what people are calling the “fast lane.” Yep, some people are saying that cable and internet provider companies are wanting to be more greedy. Here is the YouTube channel Vihart talking about net neutrality perfectly! Sometimes, a monopoly and capitalism combined together is not a very good thing!
On May 15th, the Federal Communications Commission is releasing proposed rules about the future of net neutrality. This issue features the big internet providers like AT&T and Comcast squaring off against internet companies like Google and Netflix about the future of our wonderful internet! These rules could allow Internet providers to discriminate based on content to provide separate and unequal connection speeds, effectively creating “fast” and “slow” lanes for the Internet. This means that website owners and entrepreneurs like you may be forced to pay an arbitrary fee to ISPs like Comcast and Time Warner if you want your visitors to be able to access your website at regular speeds, or even at all.
Net neutrality is the motion of keeping all internet websites on the same speed. And internet provider companies could not discriminate on certain websites and slow them down. Internet providers could also not charge an internet website like Apple extra money to speed up access to that site, while slowing down all other websites. Basically, if net neutrality becomes a thing of the past, the internet could become more like cable TV, and you could have to pay to access one site, pay more to access another site, pay even more to access another site, and so on. It could look something like these two pictures below. You don’t want to see this happen!
If net neutrality is taken away, smaller websites like Geek Alabama would be slowed down so much that most people could not access the site, without waiting for a very long time. Other websites, who pays a boatload of money to the internet providers, would be faster and load quicker. If the internet has unequal speeds, smaller websites would struggle to survive. Businesses on the internet that does not have the money to speed up their websites would close down, more people would be laid off, and the unemployment rates would go up even more, all because the cable and internet provider companies want to be more greedy. That would create more monopolies and be bad for America!
Here is what needs to happen! The FCC needs to keep net neutrality intact! The internet has been the best thing to come for innovators and businesses in a very long time! The internet is improving lives everywhere and brings the information people are looking for quick and fast every single day. Most people including small businesses, content creators, average people, and innovators, are hoping the FCC keeps net neutrality and even strengthens net neutrality by labeling internet providers as “Utilities.” The internet needs to remain as humanity’s most important platform for progress, and the only way the internet remains open and free for everyone, is for net neutrality to stay!
True net neutrality means the free exchange of information between people and organizations. Information is key to a society’s well-being. If net neutrality is taken away and the internet providers get to do what they want, our free speech would be severely limited. Our small businesses would be severely limited. Our content creators would be severely limited. And everyone would be severely limited, because of greed. If you care about the future of this country, send your comments to the FCC and tell them to keep net neutrality! Send your comments to the FCC by clicking here!
Sign petitions to tell the FCC and Congress to keep net neutrality at: stoptheslowlane.com and cms.fightforthefuture.org/tellfcc.
Sign a White House to keep net neutrality at: https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/maintain-true-net-neutrality-protect-freedom-information-united-states/9sxxdBgy
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