Net Neutrality vs. Net Crappiness: Which Will Prevail?

People of Austin, patrons of the World Wide Web, you’re about to get ripped off!

If you’ve ever rented a car, you know how this works. You don’t want the Mercedes, just something reliable that will provide the basic necessities. “I’ll take the Lincoln, please.” This seems like a good, mid-level choice. The clerk obliges and enters your credit card information. Then, with a plastic smile, she looks up and asks you: “Would you like air-conditioning? A CD player? Power windows and locks?” If you want these, of course, you’ll have to pay extra. A lot extra. Maybe she’ll even ask you if you’d like wheels and tires with that.

It’s really frustrating when businesses charge you for things that were once considered “part of the package.” Things that, by rights, should be free. When you rent a car, you pay for the car. You expect a decent radio, air conditioning, and all the other amenities that come with the average automobile (especially at the ridiculous, inflated rate you’re paying); you don’t expect to have to shell out extra cash for them. Nor should you. When you purchase a cell phone plan, you expect that the exorbitant monthly rate you’re paying will include basic things like text messaging…but in many cases it won't, and you’ll have to pay extra. And pretty soon, the same could very well be the case with using the Internet.

If these behemoth media conglomerates have their way, the Internet as we know it will soon disappear.

The largest phone and cable companies – including AT&T, Time Warner and Verizon – have been making moves for the past few years with Internet freedom as their target for demolition. If they have their way, these companies will charge you money for smooth, undisrupted access to Web sites, sufficient speed to run applications and permission to plug in Web-access devices like routers and modems. You know, the things we already get now for free. They think they should be able to charge Web site operators, application providers and device manufacturers for the right to use the World Wide Web. Those who don’t pony up the extra cash for these services will experience “discrimination” in the form of slow loading of Web sites and degradation of application and device performance. The bottom-line: These companies, who already charge us once for general network access, now want to charge us again for the things we do once we’re online.

If these behemoth media conglomerates have their way, the Internet as we know it will soon disappear. In its place: A disconnected Web full of gates through which none shall pass without coughing up cash for various fees and user costs. The Internet will cease to be the open media tool that its founders intended. “Net Neutrality” – the guiding principle that preserves the free and open nature of the WWW, ensuring that all users can access content or run applications/devices of their choice – will be demolished, replaced by a segmented system in which users will have to pay for things that were meant to be free to all. Many believe that through the destruction of Net Neutrality, companies that grant access to the Internet will have total discretion to control the content that we view when we start up our browsers. Creativity and economic innovation will be stifled. Online free speech will be restrained. Civic involvement through the Internet will be thwarted. And because all media – TV, phone and the Internet – will soon be consumed through the same broadband connection in our homes, controlling the Internet will only get easier for these companies if they win this battle.

However, all is not lost. Plenty is being done to block organizations like AT&T and Time Warner from gaining absolute dominion over the Web. The fight for Net Neutrality has begun anew in the U.S. Congress, and Big Media has found powerful rivals in both the House and Senate. Leading the charge are Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-North Dakota) and Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), who introduced the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2007 on January 9th, a bill that has reinvigorated the Net Neutrality debate in Washington and gained strong bipartisan support. And so the final battle for the Internet ensues.

If you’re reading this, it likely means that this debate directly affects your daily life. Without Net Neutrality, it’s highly unlikely that blogs like Austinist would be able to offer you any sort of interesting, unique content. For example, under a content-biased regime, Truecraig’s brilliance would certainly be stifled “for the public good.” Is this a world in which we want to live? We think not.

Can you spell C-E-N-S-O-R-S-H-I-P?

So, do something that will make a difference. Go on, get out there, citizen! Join your fellows in the street! Let your opinion be heard! Write your Congressperson and your Senator. Speak out. Spread the word. Raise an army! Get involved.

You can start here:

SaveTheInternet.Com
Sen. Dorgan's homepage
Sen. Snowe's homepage
Net Neutrality article from MIT

*Images courtesy of Wikipedia.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@austinist.com with further questions, comments or tips.