What Net Neutrality Means for You

I am not the heaviest user of bandwidth.  I do not stream movies, but I do watch the occasional YouTube video.  I keep my phone on WiFi and download apps, though.  I know there are plenty of people who use much more bandwidth than I do but pay the same price for Internet access.  That being said, I am wholeheartedly in favor of net neutrality.  Internet Service Providers (ISPs) should not be able to charge based on bandwidth usage.  We already pay for the speed.  Heavy streamers probably already pay more for faster Internet anyway.  Also, people who just send email only need to purchase slower speeds.  No one should get charged twice in that respect.  Being in favor of net neutrality is being in favor of keeping the Internet free and open (Gargano, 2011).  ISPs should also not be able to discriminate against certain Web sites that take up much bandwidth, especially when there is a conflict of interest, such as AT&T limiting Skype VOIP bandwidth to try to gain more cell phone customers (Orr, 2010).  If ISPs can do this, the Internet will never be the same and innovation will be stifled.  The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is against ISPs employing tiered, metered or highway (toll) plans to charge customers for usage (Orr, 2010).  Internet usage is not using a highway nor is it the same as using electricity.  A road only has so much capacity, and expansion usually cannot do more than be able to handle double the capacity.  Power plants can only generate so much electricity in so much time.  The Internet does have a total bandwidth limit, but it can continue to be expanded to a ridiculously high capacity.  I am not a high consumer of bandwidth and I support net neutrality.  Imagine if my business model depended on people using much bandwidth, such as YouTube, Netflix or Hulu.

References

Gargano, A.R. (2011). Net neutrality. Broadcast engineering, 53(2), 7.

[Net neutrality logo].  Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2011/12/wiretapping-sopa-occupy-2011-was-a-tumultuous-year-in-media-law357/

Orr, B. [CBS] (2010, December 22). What net neutrality means for you. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxz7PYlFvdI&feature=fvst