Net Neutrality......

[Damaramu 0]

Ok I got this story off of an OU news website. I didn't even know this was in the realm of possibilities and if it were to happen it'd be like the worst thing ever. I wanted to see what the political guru's here think of this since it's becoming a political issue.

 

"Net neutrality": What is it?

Click: Google, no problem. Click: CNN, don’t sweat it. Click: Streaming video of your friend’s puppy — not so fast — please insert $1 to gain access to this Web site.

 

This could be the reality of a world in which Internet service providers don’t practice network neutrality.

 

Net neutrality is the term for a policy that prevents Internet providers from controlling what content can be sent over the Web.

 

For most of the existence of the Internet, all data has been treated the same, no matter where it comes from or what form it takes.

 

The Internet has developed with neutrality in the past because of regulations requiring open access to telephone lines, but the rules do not apply to the rapidly expanding broadband access through cable companies.

 

Major broadband providers have pushed for the ability to prioritize content and charge fees depending on the type of information being sent. For example, an Internet provider like Cox Communications would be able to charge more to Web hosts sending online video or make some kinds of information download faster than others.

 

Steve Worona, director of policy and networking programs for Educause, said Internet without net neutrality would resemble cable television, where only the channels provided by a specific cable company are available in any given area.

 

What’s going on?

This month the Senate will decide whether to pass a large telecommunications bill that does not include protections for net neutrality.

 

Some Senators have already pledged to filibuster, Worona said. U.S. Senator Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, proposed the bill, which may pass this month if he is able to gather 60 votes to break the filibuster.

 

“If he can’t get 60, he won’t bring the bill to the floor,” Worona said.

 

The rumors in Washington, D.C., are that the Alaskan senator is nearing 60 votes; he currently has 40 to 45, Worona said.

 

According to SavetheInternet.com, 26 senators are publicly in favor of net neutrality, 14 are against it and 56 are unknown.

 

Oklahoma senators Tom Coburn and James Inhofe are undecided, according to the site.

 

Who’s For It?

What issue positions the American Civil Liberties Union, the Christian Coalition of America and the Feminist Majority on the same side?

 

A coalition of these groups and Save the Internet have been organized to promote net neutrality.

 

Craig Aaron, communications director for Save the Internet, said the goal of the group is to encourage open discussion about net neutrality.

 

He said the big four telecommunications companies — Verizon, Bellsouth, AT&T and Qwest — have spent about $100 million over recent months to lobby Congress against enforcing net neutrality protections.

 

“This bill is a giant early Christmas present for the phone companies,” he said. “Everyone wants to be in the Internet business.”

 

Worona said an OU student trying to access distant content from home may not be able to view it if the local network provider has not made arrangements with the content producer.

 

“As an open Internet user in your dorm room, you have access to every service on the Internet without concern that your local Internet provider has given you access,” he said. “Today, because we have network neutrality, that would just happen as a matter of course.”

 

Worona said OU would have to make arrangments with every Internet provider everywhere in the world for the information to get to the student.

 

Who’s Against It?

The main coalition opposing net neutrality is Hands Off the Internet. According to the group’s Web site, members include BellSouth, Cingular, the American Conservative Union and AT&T. The growth of the Internet “stems from the ability of entrepreneurs to expand consumer choices and opportunities without worrying about government regulation,” the site said.

 

Net Neutrality at OU

Loretta Early, associate vice president for Information Technology, said OU IT supports net neutrality.

 

“Given that net neutrality has clearly fostered innovation and research — cornerstones of higher education — OU IT supports open networks,” she said.

 

Laura Gibbs, OU online course instructor, said in an e-mail that the loss of net neutrality will hurt teachers’ ability to offer high-quality online courses.

 

She said online courses benefit from the use of multimedia — including images, audio and video — and from high levels of interactivity.

 

“What will students do if their Internet service provider downgrades university access, limiting educational traffic or charging additional fees?” she said.

 

Gibbs said the net-neutral Internet has been a huge success for business, education, private individuals, political groups and for online gamers.

 

“If the corporations persuade Congress to take away net neutrality, they are killing the goose that laid the golden egg,” Gibbs said.

[Art Sandusky 0]

This bill will die before you finish this sentence. I mean, the internet's a dump truck, don't let Slammin' Teddy Stevens tell you otherwise.

[Timmy8271 0]

Ted Stevens is a joke. This bill is not passing.

[Guest Vitamin X]

This bill will die before you finish this sentence. I mean, the internet's a dump truck, don't let Slammin' Teddy Stevens tell you otherwise.

 

IT'S NOT A DUMP TRUCK IT'S IT'S IT'S A SERIES OF TUBES!

 

If this bill were to ever pass, it'd really put a death knell on the internet, which is one of the biggest, if not the biggest technological achievement made in the last couple decades (let's face it, we haven't done much).

[bobobrazil1984 0]

This would be so fucked up if it happened. I dont think it will pass now, but if certain conditions happen, enough parents get spooked about myspace kiddie-fucking or online video games or some other retarded thing, then a politician who doesn't really know jack shit about how the internet really works can push it through.

[Hawkius Maximus 0]

I can't say I get the idea behind it.

 

You have DSL or Cable. It rocks. You can do so much with it.

 

Suddenly, their CHARGING you extra for certain extras within that service, rendering what you are paying for meaningless since there are extra charges included that used to be free.

 

What ends up happening? Broadband Internet fucking dies because no one's going to pay the somewhat big net charges, THEN pay an extra fucking dollar for every video they want to send to someone. That is sheer madness.

[MrRant 0]

You have it backwards, they would want to charge the providers of the service such as YouTube etc.

[Hawkius Maximus 0]

So they'd charge people who host sites like Youtube, but not the consumer?

 

How would they get the money to host sites like Youtube then? It still seems really stupid.

[Damaramu 0]

Wait. The impression I got from reading it was that you could get charged by your internet service provider for certain content and it'd be like having cable TV and some sites just might not be available to you at all.

[Guest CWMwasmurdered]

every decent site would shut down or start charging people.

[MrRant 0]

Wait. The impression I got from reading it was that you could get charged by your internet service provider for certain content and it'd be like having cable TV and some sites just might not be available to you at all.

 

There have been slighty different thoughts, but most of it would be that an ISP would say charge $.10 a subscriber to be able to connect to Google is Google wanted their subs to connect at the theoritical highest speed possible on their line. If Google didn't want to pay then it would be at a lower speed, possibly slow enough that the subscriber would find say the streaming video unusable and would then go to a site that does pay the ISP so that the video is usable.

[Guest JustPassinBy]

Feminist Majority

 

 

Did someone say OXYMORON?

 

I thought thats what I heard.....