The Battle Over Internet Neutrality Heats Up
Well the sabres are rattling and the cash is jingling in Washington, as the mighty Republicans have voted down the Democrats regarding the latest move in the so-called Net Neutrality battle. If you have never heard of the internet neutrality struggle going on in Washington, you can visit Save The Internet before reading further.
In my view, the whole issue is as old as the hills. Big business wants more control over what the buying public consumes. To give my readers a clear example of the importance of this issue. There has been cases of ISP providers blocking the Vonage web site and service from being viewed on their customer’s computers. This sums up the issue here. The ISP companies want to have control over what, how, and where we can view internet sites.
It’s no surprise that the Republicans are voting strongly in a direction that favors yet another form of control and restraint on the internet. I remember the golden days of the internet, and thinking to myself, this freedom will never last. It’s too powerful a medium, and power can mean money. Big business (including the Internet service providers) has been pouring billions of dollars into the Internet over the last decade, and they want to control their investment.
The like of Google and Ebay are stumbling through the corridors and alleys of Washington trying to pretend they can out lobby the crafty and shrewd lobbyists hired by the Telcoms. It’s sad to watch all this, but I do believe we will see an open and free Internet when it’s all over. The broadband providers will then be competing with each other by offering the most unfettered Internet access. The public will scorn and run from ISPs that restrict their cyber freedom.
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