Editorial cartoon by Jacob Bogdanoff
In a ruling earlier last week, the Federal Communications Commission abandoned its irresolute commitment to net neutrality. This means that Internet service providers such as Comcast and Time Warner can charge a premium fee to businesses who want faster access to customers.
The FCC has officially bequeathed the royal throne that is the Internet over to the corporate kings of the Internet world. The problem with the FCC’s decision is that it displays special treatment to the bigger Internet service providers.
For example, let’s say you want to browse Target’s website to buy certain necessities. However, you are subscribed to a small internet service provider because it a cheaper option. All the while, Time Warner Cable has charged Target a fee in which only those who have Time Warner Cable can load Target’s content faster. Too bad for the people who are subscribed to the smaller internet companies. Their online shopping experience will not be as efficient as the Time Warner Cable subscribers.
The issue is that the wealthier Internet service providing companies can afford to charge these businesses money for the faster service. And businesses will pay them because they know that most people do subscribe to the more popular Internet service providers.
In a way, the FCC has eliminated smaller Internet service providers from competition. If you do not have Verizon, AT&T or the other big name Internet service providers then good luck on trying to get your Netflix to load.
The concept of destroying net neutrality seems unfair. Give the little guys a chance.
Think of this new ruling as a freeway for the Internet. A freeway has fast lanes and slow lanes. And it seems that only the richer connection companies are the only ones that can drive in the fast lane. This change will not only hurt small internet service providers, but other small businesses with independent websites. They will not be able to pay up to companies, making it harder for them to reach their customers.
Also, dismantling net neutrality will hurt the consumers, AKA; you. Eventually these costs are going to fall onto the consumers and if you want to get onto Facebook, you’re going to pay extra. Unfortunately the fight for net neutrality doesn’t have big name or big money backers in congress, so this is a grassroots fight that we all need to be engaged in.
One of the groups leading the fight is Save the Internet, a campaign fighting for the rights to “individual, economic and political freedoms.” They can be found at savetheinternet.com.