I personally believe that net neutrality is a necessary and beneficial principle and right that all ISP’s should follow. It is so frustrating and infuriating to know that there is a duopoly in existence that has full control over citizen’s right to access the internet. The first aspect that I find most absurd is the failure of these companies to implement updated technology like fiber optics, instead they using extremely outdated methods of providing connectivity i.e. copper wire. The fact that other countries offer speeds that far exceed the ones available to us, when we are supposed to be at the forefront of modern technology should be criminal. My internet provider has been Cox Cable for the longest time, and recently I just gave up on them. I then began to search for ISPs that offer competitive speeds at much lower prices, and it is incredible how hard that actually is. I finally came across CenturyLink which is a DSL provider using fiber optics and they promise a consistent 10mb/s. Now, I’m unsure if they actually use fiber optics throughout their network, but I’ve been using it for the past three weeks and I’m happy with the service. I am not happy that 10mb/s is the fastest speed available to me, but I am much happier with CenturyLink charging me 29.99 a month for 10mb/s where as Cox was charging me around $54.00 a month for the same speed, that most of the time I was unable to achieve.
Not only are speed being capped, bogged down and limited entirely to the consumer but the openness of the internet is at risk. If ISP’s become the gatekeepers of the internet, they will have the option of being bias and discriminatory against whomever they choose. The mere fact that this is a possibility should send up red flags for everyone who has an interest in furthering the US economy. It’s so bizarre that this clearly criminal option for ISP’s is going unnoticed by some of the top players. Also, I believe that if ISP’s are given this power, censorship on the internet will become a dismal reality.
The internet as a fundamental right needs to be recognized worldwide so society will be able to prosper. The internet has become such an essential part of daily life, such an important aspect of society and democracy that its openness and freeness should not be hindered by money hungry companies, who seem to spend more on lobbying then they do on improving their service.
