Term paper written for Communications class.

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Savannah Smith
Mrs. Wilson
Communication 205
10, November 2016
Net Neutrality
Does Net Neutrality gives an illusion of equality to the modern inter web? Do
the wealthy few really get the best out of the inter web today? Net Neutrality is
defined by UStoday.com as “Net neutrality, or open Internet, is the principle that
Internet service providers (ISPs) should give consumers access to all legal content
and applications on an equal basis, without favoring some sources or blocking others.
It prohibits ISPs from charging content providers for speedier delivery of their
content on "fast lanes" and deliberately slowing the content from content providers
that may compete with ISPs. An ISP is a company that provides you with access to
the Internet, like AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, Cox and Time Warner Cable.” (Snider,
Yu, Brown, & Brown, 2015). The debate for whether Net Neutrality should stand is
in full swing is still being debated today; many minority communities are in fact
getting fewer opportunities thanks to not having enough money for a higher internet
connection. The most important questions to be informed on Net Neutrality are: Is
Net Neutrality just an illusion in the U.S? Why is Net Neutrality important? What is
the U.S policy on Net Neutrality?

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Is Net Neutrality just an illusion in the U.S? A Applying Traditional First
Amendment Protection law review quotes
[T]he FCC Attempts Enforcement of Net Neutrality. As the
technological capacity for discriminatory behavior became more
prevalent, the FCC began to take steps towards protecting net
neutrality principles. In 2005, the Commission released a Policy
Statement establishing Four Internet Freedoms that entitled
internet users to: (1) access any lawful content; (2) use any
applications or services; (3) connect any devices that did not harm
the network; and benefit from competition among network
providers.However, a 2010 D.C. Circuit decision eliminated the
FCC’s authority to impose such principles. (Kan)
Steps have been taken to put in place laws so the internet remains a free an open
internet, however the issue lies in if we start enforcing laws on the inter-web then it
does not remain free put controlled by the FCC. The definition of the FCC or the
Federal Communications Commission is defined by the 10th edition Media and
Culture Mass Communication in a Digital Age as “an independent U.S. government
agency charged with regulation interstate and international communication by radio,
television, wire, satellite, cable, and by internet.” (Campbell)
[In} making policy decisions, the Federal Communications
Commission must consider the impact on the entire population, not
just a majority of it. Many fail to consider all aspects of the net

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neutrality debate, especially the effect it has on minority
communities. (Kamal)
Net Neutrality is not just an illusion in the United States the definition of Net
Neutrality is an “Internet’s guiding principle: It preserves our right to communicate
freely online. This is the definition of an open Internet.” (Campbell) As of today we
are still fighting for Net Neutrality the larger companies don’t just get to control data
flow. Freepress.com quotes
[The} consequences of a world without Net Neutrality would be
devastating. Innovation would be stifled, competition limited, and
access to information restricted. Consumer choice and the free
market would be sacrificed to the interests of a few corporations.
On the Internet, consumers are in ultimate control — deciding
between content, applications and services available anywhere, no
matter who owns the network. There’s no middleman. But without
Net Neutrality, the Internet will look more like cable TV. Network
owners will decide which channels, content and applications are
available; consumers will have to choose from their menu.”
(savetheinternet.com)
In 2010 a debate was held to discuss that freedom through regulation is not a
figure of speech. The debate quotes that
[D]iscusses the significance of Network Neutrality law by addressing
the development of discriminatory business models affecting a content-
neutral and open Internet. It refutes arguments that oppose to Network

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Neutrality. It cites actions made by several Internet service providers
(ISPs), including Madison River Telephone Co. LLC, Comcast Corp.
and Shaw Cable that violate the principles of an open Internet. It
highlights the opposition of Comcast to the implementation of the law.”
(Sharp)
This debate is showing how the laws of Net Neutrality are important to get a free
open Internet and to avoid discrimination.
So why should Net Neutrality be important to you? The regulations on the
Internet if done right with protect the rights of the people using it. If the FCC does not
violate the terms and conditions of the laws passed then Net Neutrality could work.
An IEEE Communications Magazine had this to say about why Net Neutrality is
important
[N]etwork neutrality has been topic of discussion for the past 25 years,
with current legislation/ regulation in the United States and Europe
targeting the ISPs or ? Common carriers? But the reality of the Internet in
the 2010s is that various actors contribute to the delivery of data, with
sometimes-contradictory objectives. In this article, we highlight the fact
that neutrality principles can be bypassed in many ways without violating
the rules currently evoked in the debate; for example, via CDNs, which
deliver content on behalf of content providers for a fee, or via search
engines, which can hinder competition and innovation by affecting the

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visibility and accessibility of content. We therefore call for an extension of
Net Neutrality debate to all the actors involved in the Internet delivery
chain. We particularly challenge the definition of net neutrality as it is
generally discussed. Our goal is to initiate a relevant debate on Net
Neutrality in an increasingly complex Internet ecosystem, and to provide
examples of possible neutrality rules for different levels of the delivery
chain, this level separation being inspired by the OSI layer model.”
(Maile)
Cnn.com quotes
[N]o company should be able to interfere with this open marketplace.
ISPs are by definition the gatekeepers to the Internet, and without Net
Neutrality, they would seize every possible opportunity to profit from
that gatekeeper control. Without Net Neutrality, the next Google would
never get off the ground. (Snider)
Net Neutrality affects everyone who has access to the Internet. It should be
important to you personally because Net Neutrality influences the way you get
access to your information.
[N]et Neutrality opponents are working everywhere from Congress to
the courts to dismantle or undermine the FCC’s Title II classification.
In the wake of the February ruling, 10 lawsuits designed to gut Net
Neutrality have been filed (Free Press has jumped in to defend the
rules) and legislators have introduced numerous deceptive bills that
would demolish these protections. Most recently, the attack in

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Congress has come from the appropriations committees. Both the
House and Senate committees have passed bills containing riders that
would sabotage the Net Neutrality rules.
Why is Net Neutrality important for businesses? Net Neutrality is
crucial for small business owners, startups and entrepreneurs, who rely
on the open Internet to launch their businesses, create a market,
advertise their products and services, and distribute products to
customers. We need the open Internet to foster job growth,
competition and innovation. Net Neutrality lowers the barriers of entry
for entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses by ensuring the Web
is a fair and level playing field. It’s because of Net Neutrality that
small businesses and entrepreneurs have been able to thrive on the
Internet. They use the Internet to reach new customers and showcase
their goods, applications and services. (Savetheinternet)
This passage is showing that we need to protect the Internet with Net Neutrality to
help small business grow and not have the larger companies like Netflix to control
data flow and for monopolies to not form.
[T]he international ramifications of different proposals and a critique
of the U.S.'s statutory net neutrality solution. It provides an overview
of the Internet's development, the historical role of
telecommunications companies and the regulatory environment. It then
focuses on the background of the issue and on arguments of the
players campaigning for and against net neutrality. Other significant

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matters that form part of the article are explored and analyzed.”
(Pfister)
Focusing more on discrimination of the smaller companies this Arizona Law
Review had this to say on the matter.
This article refers to Net neutrality" refers to the principle that broadband
providers should treat all Internet content and applications equally. After
much debate, the Federal Communications Commission adopted binding
net neutrality rules in December 2010, which forbid broadband providers
from unreasonably discriminating when delivering Internet traffic. The
prohibition on unreasonable discrimination has a long pedigree in
telecommunications law, and net neutrality proponents have long asserted
the need to extend that nondiscrimination norm to cyberspace. But the
Commission's net neutrality rules impose far greater obligations on
broadband providers than the law ever imposed on other
telecommunications companies. While the Commission laudably seeks to
protect consumers, its rules have the unintended consequence of stifling
innovation in the broadband industry. A more nuanced set of restrictions
grounded in the Commission's traditional nondiscrimination rules would
be far superior policy, and would reflect the learned wisdom of 75 years of
telecommunications law. (Lyons)
So what can be done to keep Net Neutrality? What is the U.S policy on Net Neutrality
right now? The article in Foreign Affairs discusses the Net Neutrality policy in 2014
by saying

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[T]he reported problems with U.S. President Barack Obama's Internet
policy as of July 2014, focusing on a push for net neutrality in America.
According to the article, the concept of net neutrality holds that Internet
Service Providers (ISPs) should not offer preferential treatment to some
websites over others or charge some companies arbitrary fees to reach
Internet users. It states that in 2007, then-U.S. presidential candidate
Obama promised that the U.S. Federal Communication Commission
would defend net neutrality.” (Ammori)
So what is the U.S policy on Net Neutrality?
{N}et neutrality is a war being fought for control of the
information stream known as the Internet. On one side, we have
Internet Service Providers (“ISPs”) who have spent time and
money developing technology to quickly and efficiently transmit
information around the globe. ISPs see the Internet as a new
revenue-producing frontier that they must control. On the other
side, we have the general public, hungry for all the information and
services potentially available through the use of the Internet and
whose access and availability are being policed by the Federal
Communication Commission (“FCC”). “ (Missirian)
Some Net Neutrality rules passed by the Federal Communication Commission are
[I]n May 2014, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler released a plan that would
have allowed companies like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon to discriminate

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online and create pay-to-play fast lanes. The commission voted 3 to 2 to
approve Wheeler's Net Neutrality proposal. Democratic commissioners
Mignon Clyburn and Jessica Rosenworcel voted yes, along with Wheeler,
who was appointed by President Obama. Commissioners Ajit Pai and
Michael O'Rielly, both Republicans, voted no. On Feb. 26, the FCC voted
to define broadband as what we all know it is. The court didn't comment
on the merits of the rules. Instead, it ruled against the FCC's ability to
enforce Net Neutrality under the shaky legal foundation it established for
those rules. The court specifically stated that its “task as a reviewing court
is not to assess the wisdom of the Open Internet Order regulations, but
rather to determine whether the Commission has demonstrated that the
regulations fall within the scope of its statutory grant of authority.
When the FCC made its 2010 open Internet rule, it relied on two decisions the
Bush-era FCC made, rulings that weakened the FCC’s authority over
broadband Internet access providers. Nothing in the January 2014 court
decision prohibited the FCC from reversing those misguided decisions and
reclassifying ISPs as common carriers.” (Ustoday)
Today the Internet rules with the new rules that went into motion in 2015. The FCC
still has the authority to regulate the Internet under shaky regulations, but is under
advisements to not make any biased decisions based on money or larger corporations.
(Open Internet)
[T]he Open Internet rules went into effect on June 12, 2015. They are
ensuring consumers and businesses have access to a fast, fair, and open

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Internet. The new rules apply to both fixed and mobile broadband service.
This approach recognizes advances in technology and the growing
significance of mobile broadband Internet access in recent years. These
rules will protect consumers no matter how they access the Internet,
whether on a desktop computer or a mobile device.
o Bright Line Rules:
 No Blocking: broadband providers may not block access to legal content,
applications, services, or non-harmful devices.
 No Throttling: broadband providers may not impair or degrade lawful
Internet traffic on the basis of content, applications, services, or non-
harmful devices.
 No Paid Prioritization: broadband providers may not favor some lawful
Internet traffic over other lawful traffic in exchange for consideration of
any kind—in other words, no "fast lanes." This rule also bans ISPs from
prioritizing content and services of their affiliates. (OpenInternet)
In conclusion Net Neutrality needs to be protected to keep equality between
the large and minority companies. You can also be apart of keeping Net Neutrality by
writing your local congressman Nathan Deal. Net Neutrality needs to be kept up by
the FCC to make sure the Internet stays free and unbiased. The Internet should be a
neutral place for all companies and people using it.