The Federal Communications Commission will vote Thursday on whether to treat Internet service providers as utilities to impose net neutrality rules. Here’s a primer on the debate and the proposed rules.
What is net neutrality?
Network neutrality is the concept that broadband network owners should treat all similar Internet content equally and not block any legal content.That means that Internet service providers shouldn’t be allowed to do such things as slow the speed at which certain websites or content load or block any legal content from loading altogether.
How had net neutrality been governed?
In 2002, as the Internet was growing, the FCC designated broadband Internet as an information service, which is subject to lighter regulation than it would be if it were considered a utility such as a telecom service.
In 2005, the FCC adopted guiding principles for online traffic that included a right to access for any lawful online application. Comcast challenged the FCC’s rules, and a federal appeals court struck them down in 2010, saying the FCC lacked the authority to regulate online traffic.
The agency adopted new net neutrality rules in 2010, which banned providers from blocking, fast-tracking or slowing any legal Internet traffic. Verizon Communications Inc. sued to challenge the new rules, and in January 2014 the court again overturned them.
What is the FCC considering now? Full story
The commission will vote Thursday on a proposal by FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler to:
• Treat Internet service providers more like public utilities by reclassifying them as telecom services under federal law. This would open the Internet carriers to wider regulation by the FCC, though the agency would forgo regulation of rates and other matters besides net neutrality rules.
• Bar Internet carriers from blocking lawful sites, apps, services or devices.
• Prohibit Internet providers from throttling or slowing down the speed of certain traffic based on its content or origin
• Ban the practice of paid prioritization, which allows certain companies or services to pay a fee to get faster connections
Why is the FCC considering action now?
Last year, in ruling that the agency lacked authority to enact the rules it had adopted, the federal appeals court suggested that a possible solution was to classify broadband Internet services as telecom services.
Net neutrality supporters fear that without strong regulations requiring service providers to treat all traffic equally, the Internet could eventually be segregated into haves and have-nots. They’ve called on regulators to act quickly to put such rules in place.
What’s different about the net neutrality debate this time?
A few key things. First, the FCC is trying a new approach to regulating Internet service providers. It is trying to reclassify them as telecom services, similar to conventional telephone service, under the federal telecommunications law. This would make them subject to greater regulation.
The rules passed in 2010 and struck down last year relied on a different section of telecommunications law and the latest approach was taken with the aim of withstanding future legal challenges.
Second, net neutrality rules would apply not only to network owners that provide Internet access, but also, for the first time, to wireless carriers that connect smartphones, tablets and other devices to the Web.
Who supports stricter net neutrality rules?
Internet companies such as Google and streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu that rely on high-speed connections support the concept of treating all similar Internet traffic equally.
Consumer advocates and most Democrats, including President Obama, argue that strict rules are needed to prevent broadband providers from altering the quality of Internet delivery, favoring content that they own or degrading content from competitors or those that lack negotiating clout.
If rules aren’t in place, they argue, Internet service providers will be free to charge some sites and companies to load their videos, music and other content faster, leaving other providers that can’t afford to pay, or won’t, in a “digital slow lane.”
Net neutrality supporters argue that online giants such as Google and Amazon have been successful, in part, because of a free and open Internet.
Who opposes the proposed net neutrality rules?
Many cable, wireless, and broadband companies oppose the FCC proposal. Providers have long argued that companies that eat up the most bandwidth, usually video streaming services, should pay extra for that privilege.
They say that the Internet has been able to grow because it was largely free from government regulation. Broadband providers contend that the FCC oversteps its authority in setting any net neutrality rules, and they have threatened to sue the agency should it adopt the new rules.
Most Republicans in Congress have also decried the FCC’s approach. They argue that there have been no widespread abuses so far and that the new rules could discourage Internet service providers from investing in network infrastructure. GOP leaders recently introduced legislation on net neutrality following, an approach supported by cable TV and wireless companies.
Would net neutrality rules solve sudden interruptions in video streaming?
Not necessarily. Netflix has had disputes with Internet service providers in the past, with each side blaming the other for buffering issues on the streaming video service. But the dispute centered on how quickly Netflix data was delivered from the company to service providers such as AT&T and Comcast, not from those service providers to consumers’ homes.
Netflix, which had been using third-party services to deliver its data, claimed it had essentially been forced to pay a toll to allow customers to stream movies uninterrupted. Netflix later struck a series of deals to cut out the middlemen and connect directly to Internet service providers instead.
The proposed rules for net neutrality govern the so-called last mile of wires that connect your home to the network.
Though those rules would not directly affect the connections between content companies and Internet service providers, they would give the FCC more authority to mediate disputes such as the Netflix squabble with network owners.
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