Over this Thanksgiving holiday, the FCC announced it will have
a meeting to approve its plan repealing Net Neutrality. For those who don’t
know exactly what it is, Net Neutrality, originally passed in 2015, is a set of
rules that prohibit ISPs from prioritizing customer access to certain websites.
For instance, without it, someone may have to pay more to access to certain
websites that offer video streaming, social media, etc. such as Netflix or
Facebook. FCC Chairman, Ajit Pai, has stated that “the FCC would simply require
Internet service providers to be transparent about their practices so that
consumers can buy the service plan that’s best for them”. In regards to the
current Net Neutrality regulation, Pai also stated, “it’s depressed investment
in building and expanding broadband networks and deterred innovation”.
The argument for the repeal is that ISPs can’t offer new
business models or services to customers. The argument against it is limiting consumer
choice and access, both to residential and business customers. Some even view it from a business perspective saying it “would hurt innovation”. Since the announcement the FCC has
made, various companies have urged the public to voice their opinion about the
plan. Over “20 million” comments to the agency have been made in opposition of
the change, and companies on both sides will lobby on December 14th this year.
Regardless of political climate, political biases, etc., do
you have any thoughts regarding this?
What about from a business perspective?
What about from a business perspective?
What do you think about it? Why offer both sides without an opinion? A blog is, after all, a way to express what you think.
ReplyDeleteI first saw this on a Facebook post this last week where people from both sides were getting very heated arguing with each other. I am still confused as to exactly what this means. I have researched it but do not have a full understanding. I hear arguments from both sides and they all sound convincing. At first though I feel like being able to pay for different services separately would be a good thing for people who don't use social media or video streaming services and shouldn't have to pay for everything with on package but I do not have a definitive opinion because I still do not have a full understanding of what this entails and what implications net neutrality does or does not have. But if this has only gone on for 2 years, was there anything really wrong before? I would love it if someone could help shed some light on this topic and offer your opinions!
ReplyDeleteWhile I do think that Net Neutrality is something that should not be eliminated (if it ain't broke don't fix it), I don't think that if it were to disappear, the market would have the serious backlash that it does. The truth of the matter is that ISPs slow down your connection on purpose anyway, the idea that they could now do it for certain websites doesn't really change that concept. It's my understanding that this is being done in the hopes that ISPs will reinvest new profits in bringing internet to the more deserted places of the U.S. While this will give the ISPs more ways to earn a profit, there are several satellite internet companies that would be pushes out of the market by this. I feel like the overwhelming majority of people are against this legislation and so I doubt that it will come into law.
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