Net Neutrality: Enjoy The Pause Before The Fight
After more than a year of debate and unprecedented public comment, the Federal Communications Commission on Thursday released its Open Internet Order, designed to ensure network neutrality — the non-discriminatory treatment of Internet data. But many see this as the opening salvo in a long and protracted battle, with opponents, including politicians in the US and abroad and telecommunications carriers such as AT&T and Verizon, expected to challenge the new rules.
The most controversial aspect of the net neutrality rules – the reclassification of mobile and fixed broadband companies as common carriers under Title II of the Communications Act – became widely known when the FCC voted 3-2 to approve the order last month. But the details, all 400 pages of them if you include commentary from the FCC commissioners, have only now emerged. Beyond the Title II reclassification, the substantive portion of the order is relatively small.
The rules prohibit broadband providers from blocking or impairing “lawful content, applications, services, or non harmful devices, subject to reasonable network management.” They forbid prioritization of Internet traffic – paid, for non-monetary consideration, or for an affiliated entity – unless approved by the FCC upon proof of the absence of harm. And they forbid broadband providers from coming between Internet users and application providers to demand tolls or deny access. What qualifies as “reasonable network management” will end up being determined by the FCC on a case-by-case basis.
Full article by Thomas Claburn, InformationWeek
About the Author
Roger Chu is the Marketing Coordinator at GSAmart, the leading GSA sales and marketing partner for technology companies.
