Internet neutrality became a buzzword some years ago when the power players began to make moves that threatened basic principles of online freedom. A law professor named Tim Wu coined the term and it became a battleground over tech policy ever since. In a nutshell, the principle of neutrality holds that governments and service providers should treat all forms of online data equally. There should be no discrimination between sites, applications, users, content, platforms, equipment, and so forth. The service should be available to all at the same level as a matter of trust, from personal blogs to online casinos to Apple. Unfortunately, this isn’t always followed.
The Peer-to-peer Example
Concerned sectors have had to fight for neutrality given glaring violations by different entities. Discrimination is unfortunately common for peer-to-peer applications. When people share data online using these tools, their bandwidth is sometimes decreased without their knowledge. This leads to a general slowdown that delays completion of the file download. There are several ways of doing this with Comcast being found to use forged packets. Users became alarmed after this revelation with some shifting to other ISPs after reading the news. A strong stand with this principle as a primary policy is needed in order to prevent other occurrences.
A Wide Range of Support
Everyone from civic leaders to tech companies has been championing this cause. Consumer advocates worry that a breakdown in neutrality will tremendously affect user experience. They maintain that people should have a right to choose whatever they want to get out of the Internet without technological blockage that would force them into one way or another. For instance, phone companies aren’t allowed to influence who people should call. We can call anyone we please without concern that outside forces are influencing the quality of the line or blocking our attempts. Some ISPs may also abuse their ability to affect data transmission if they remain unchecked.
The Government and Its Stand
It is fortunate that no less than President Obama has made his support for net neutrality quite clear. He has even directed the FCC and related agencies to ensure that the principle is adopted at all levels. He asked the commission to protect broadband Internet by classifying it as a telecoms service. This move will make it a public utility which allows the government to exercise broad regulatory powers. It is hoped that consumers will be better protected with this reclassification. The specific rules regarding neutrality and its implementation are crucial in making the principle come alive.
Online Casino
This is one of the sectors that benefit from neutrality. With this policy in place, there will be no fears of bandwidth being throttled when playing in any of the platforms. Online casinos will be treated just like any other online business and allowed to coexist peacefully alongside everybody else. The main beneficiaries of this are the players who simply wish to have a convenient form of entertainment right at their desk. However, we must remember that we must be vigilant against any changes in policy especially as administrations change around the world.
