Essay On Net Neutrality

The internet as we know it today has grown exponentially since it was first, fully adapted for public use in the mid-1990s. In nearly two decades of growth and development in both content and infrastructure, an understood concept of network neutrality, a concept that was never successfully legislated in the United States, existed and became the guiding principle for self-regulating the internet and minimizing government involvement. Network neutrality, or net neutrality, at its core is simply an idea or principle that all data, every bit of network traffic, should be treated equally. The transmission of illegal content, viruses, etc. are logical exceptions, of course. In December, 2010, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) reclassified broadband Internet Service Providers (ISP) as an “information service” under the FCC Open Internet Order 2010, effectively equalizing ISPs with telephone service providers. This order banned both service providers from blocking access to competitors or even websites, such as Netflix or Hulu. In September, 2011, the FCC quickly and firmly followed up with supporting regulations that stated ISPs must be fully transparent in their business practices and cannot deny or discriminate against lawful internet traffic. As recently as April, 2014, that has changed, and now network neutrality may become a thing of the past. A DC Circuit Court decision between Verizon Communications, Inc and the FCC ruled that the FCC has no power to enforce net neutrality rules upon ISPs because they are not classified as “common carriers”. The earlier misclassification of ISPs by the FCC, along with the court’s decision, led to the FCC changing their stance on net neutrality in order to comply with the rul...

... middle of paper ...

..., 22(6), 454-463.

Lee, R. S., & Wu, T. (2009). Subsidizing Creativity through Network Design: Zero-Pricing and Net Neutrality. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 23(3), 61-76.

Newman, J. (2014). The FCC’s Net Neutrality Proposal: Why it Stinks and How it Could Affect You. Time.Com, 1.

Powell, M. K. (2004). Preserving Internet Freedom: Guiding Principles for the Industry. Journal on Telecommunications & High Technology Law, 3, 5-21.

Steffe, C. R. (2009). Why We Need Net Neutrality Legislation Now or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Trust the FCC. Drake Law Review, 58, 1149-1184.

Wu, T. (2003). Network Neutrality, Broadband Discrimination. Journal on Telecommunications & High Technology Law, 2, 141-175.

Zhu, K. (2007). Bringing Neutrality to Network Neutrality. Berkeley Tech. L.J., 22(1), 615-645. Retrieved from http://scholarship.law.berkeley.edu/btlj/vol22/iss1/32