Internet for Sale: Federal Court Guts Net Neutrality
The Washington, D.C., District Court of Appeals just eliminated the FCC's already-compromised protection of a free and open Internet and moved to limit the federal watchdog's authority over broadband.
Shutterstock
The Washington, D.C., District Court of Appeals just eliminated the FCC’s already-compromised protection of a free and open Internet and moved to limit the federal watchdog’s authority over broadband.
First, some background: In May 2010, the FCC issued rules meant to protect net neutrality, the principle that Internet service providers must provide access without prejudice to their customers. The ISPs, particularly the big ones like Verizon and Time Warner, don’t like this. They envision a world in which companies like Netflix and YouTube pay an extra tithe so that users can speedily stream content. A site like Truthdig, for example, might get a much shoddier connection. Former FCC chair Julius Genachowski struck a compromise position. Land-based Internet connections would continue to abide by net neutrality, but over the air broadband — the data used by your phone — could play by different rules. This was a major sop to industry, since more and more people use mobile devices to access the Internet.
Anyway, that’s now a moot point, as The Guardian reports:
Internet providers may be able to offer faster connections to preferred websites, or even block competitors, after a US appeals court ruled that regulators could no longer enforce the principle known as “net neutrality”.
In a case seen as having profound implications for the future of digital innovation and free speech, the US court of appeals for the District of Columbia ruled in favour of broadband giant Verizon, following a long-running challenge to the Federal Communications Commission’s rule-making powers.
— Posted by Peter Z. Scheer
Wait, before you go…If you're reading this, you probably already know that non-profit, independent journalism is under threat worldwide. Independent news sites are overshadowed by larger heavily funded mainstream media that inundate us with hype and noise that barely scratch the surface. We believe that our readers deserve to know the full story. Truthdig writers bravely dig beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that tells you what’s really happening and who’s rolling up their sleeves to do something about it.
Like you, we believe a well-informed public that doesn’t have blind faith in the status quo can help change the world. Your contribution of as little as $5 monthly or $35 annually will make you a groundbreaking member and lays the foundation of our work.
Support Truthdig
Disgraced movie mogul faces new charges of assaulting two women during Oscar week in 2013 as jury selection is set to begin in Manhattan.
The American, British and Swedish judicial systems have been manipulated and corrupted to ensure the publisher is extradited to the U.S.
Court statements veered from the scientist's original conclusions in at least three cases.
Current and former employees of the fast-food chain have joined a class-action lawsuit claiming they had to work extra hours without pay.
On Wednesday, Richard Glossip will face execution by the state of Oklahoma despite mounting evidence pointing to his innocence.
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that Richard Glossip can be executed in September, despite the strong evidence of his innocence and the intense pain that Oklahoma's injection cocktail is known to cause.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.