Pros and Cons of Net Neutrality

This website is about the pros and cons of net neutrality.

Pros:

• It creates an equal playing field.

- With net neutrality in place, internet service providers have little say on what passes through the mechanisms that are used by customers to access the internet. There are controls in place for illegal activities, but companies like Comcast or AT&T wouldn’t be able to change how a customer’s data is delivered to them. This means an ISP under net neutrality cannot block access, change services, or alter the flow of data simply because there is something that goes on which they don’t like.

• It provides everyone with a freedom of expression.

- Blogs, services, businesses, and any website that can operate legally is able to do so and be available because of net neutrality. There isn’t any censorship available as long as the content being offered meets legal obligations. If illegal content is discovered, it can be immediately reported to law enforcement officials. Without this freedom of expression, it could become easier for illegal content, such as child pornography, to become more available. If a small ISP blocked access to all and approved of such a thing, it could hamper keeping our communities safe.

• It protects innovation.

- Although there are companies which have made billions of dollars because of their access to the internet, they were able to get started on the same footing. Innovation is protected with the internet remains neutral. Big companies still have the same access as SMBs or freelancers and this allows everyone to earn a comfortable living or offer information in a way that best suits them.

Cons:

• Free internet access would likely go away.

- When the internet becomes a place where profitability is the primary concern, the idea of providing free internet access to those who cannot afford it goes away. Providers could charge whatever they wanted and restrict access to whomever they please. This could lead to demographic discrimination, socioeconomic discrimination, or prioritize content to the wealthiest who are willing to pay high prices for the fastest data streams.

• More regulations would create slower access.

- Let’s use the US Government as an example here. When the government was originally created in the 18th century, the goal was to create an entity that was inefficient and slow. The founders of the US felt that the greatest danger to the people of their new country was having a government in place that could move too fast. By slowing everything down, people could protect themselves. If net neutrality is supervised by the government, this will be the result. Everything is equally slow.

• Reduced income from internet uses limits infrastructure improvements.

- There are certain businesses and high-use individuals who consume large amounts of bandwidth every month. If net neutrality was removed, these high-level consumers would be asked to pay more for what they consume. This added income could then be used to upgrade the infrastructure of each internet service provider, making it possible for advanced fiber networks to be installed in many communities.