COM125 Week 14: "Let It Be", According To the Beatles

The internet exists to provide anyone goods, services, or information at the click of your mouse. It has taken decades from the start of the internet and the first file sharing, to get it to the enormous giant of what most people would agree they cannot live without today. It is to my understanding that right now, the internet is not controlled by any one single person or corporation, but by everyone who uses it. Yes, of course different aspects of the internet are controlled such as the regulation of webspace use and fees for internet access, but no one single source claims the internet as 'theirs'. Net neutrality, a term I knew little about before writing this, seems to be a hot and controversial topic; its appeal received the attention of a wide range of audience members including everyone from artists to businessmen. To be net neutral means to not place any restrictions or authority on the type or content of files traveling over the internet. People arguing on the side of net neutrality believe that large corporations such as AT&T or Verizon, under conditions other than net neutrality, will start controlling and put priority over files they believe to be more important than others, slowing down the process of internet access and eventually blocking access to websites that in their eyes, are of zero importance. Is this not the very reason that many people enjoy the internet? Blogs: places where people can electronically express their feelings, give opinions, or spread general to specific information would have less authority over something such as a corporate website. K.C. Jones (2007) explains net neutrality best by saying, "The Internet now allows information to move in data packets through networks of computers and routers on a 'best efforts basis.' In other words, the system routes packets with little regard for what type of information or applications they contain or who created them."



On both sides of the debate over net neutrality, great concerns arise. Competition leads to lower prices because companies want your service so they will offer their goods at a lower price than the next guy. With internet in the United States, it does not work that way. Huge corporate giants control much of the entire United States broadband internet access which makes internet access in the U.S. expensive. "The corporate giants are also vigorously fighting to stop cities and towns from building 'Community Internet' systems -- affordable, high-speed broadband services funded in part by community groups and municipalities -- even in places where the cable and DSL companies themselves don't offer service" (S. Turner). Those in favor of net neutrality are concerned that one day, internet service may just be too expensive and they will have to make a sacrifice to not have something they have become reliant on. On the other hand, I understand the business part of the spectrum. Every business hopes that they will one day rise to the top and be the leading manufacturer of a certain product however, where I draw the line between smart business and greed is when a person with an average income in the United States cannot afford something that they know should be more affordable.
The internet essentially as it is now is a place where anyone can create something and share it will millions of people. I feel the topic of net neutrality relates somewhat to open source software. Both controversial, but have gotten some software and the internet to where they are now. I feel that although the internet may today, not be 100% net neutral, it is at a completely satisfying medium. One internet service provider does not control priority over files traveling over the internet. In a Wikipedia article Bob Kahn was quoted in saying, "If the goal is to encourage people to build new capabilities, then the party that takes the lead in building that new capability, is probably only going to have it on their net to start with and its probably not going to be on anybody else's net."



I believe in net neutrality. If it has gotten the internet to the magnificent electronic entity that it is today, I cannot imagine what it will be like in the future. One can only wonder that if the internet were to become not net neutral, if advancements would be made to better it to the degree and speed they have done so in the past.


References:

Jones, K. (2007, March, 16). Net Neutrality Debate Remains Contentious. Information Week, Retrieved April 12, 2007, from http://www.informationweek.com/shared/printableArticle.jhtml?articleID=198001557

Network neutrality. (2007, April 11). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 00:06, April 13, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Network_neutrality&oldid=122005930

Turner, S. (2007). Free American broadband!. Salon, Retrieved April 12, 2007, from http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2005/10/18/broadband/index.html