A lot has happened since I discussed what Net Neutrality is and why we should be thankful for it. For one, on December 14th, 2017, the members of the Federal Communications Commission ruled, 3-2, to repeal Net Neutrality, but what happens next? The order does not go into effect right away (which is great) because it has to go through the courts.
In order to overturn the repeal, the Senate needs at least 30 votes to repeal the FCC's decision. Senator Ed Markey proposed a resolution to restore net neutrality. He was able to gain the 30 votes (magic number of votes in the full Senate) on the FCC’s decision, and hopefully, those 30 senators won’t change their mind.
Now, even with the 30 senators, there will still be a debate on the Senate floor which leads to the final vote. If the vote against net neutrality is approved, it goes to the house and if it passes there, the desk of Donald Trump. And it’s unlikely he will approve.
So what happens if all that fails?
One, pro-neutrality groups are already preparing for legal battles if all else fails. But, it’s a long path to victory. But, if the net neutrality defenders end up being successful courts could reverse the order and restore the FCC net neutrality rules before the order was even issued.
But what did the vote of net neutrality even reverse?
It reverses rules that were set in place in 2015. The rules were internet service providers were ruled as common carriers under the Title II of the Communications Act 1934. It ensured that high-speed internet would be regulated as a public use.
Companies like Comcast or Time Warner were required (and so far, still are), to treat all information on the internet the same without charging more for certain content, or blocking or slowing down the internet speed.
It has helped new and small companies to sell their goods and reach out to new target audiences to distribute their information without restrictions from broadband companies and helped get the information they needed to reach or to just see without having problems occur to stop them.
Pai, who’s a former Verizon supporter, and Verizon isn’t a fan of net neutrality, wants the internet split up into tiers like cable packages channels. In order to gain access, or maybe even more access you might need to pay a fee in order to access what you want.
What could potentially happen under the repeal of Net Neutrality rules is something more along the lines of companies like AT&T, Comcast, etc. to deliver more traffic to server's, (slowing down certain websites) to create faster lanes for their own websites and make certain content they might not like, harder to reach for rival companies consumers.
For example, in 2012 AT&T was in some hot water when it prevented Apple's FaceTime app from working with their customers because of the wireless networks those consumers were using.
The good thing, we won’t be noticing a difference for a while. For one, it needs to go through the different courts, especially if it gets enough votes to repeal the FCC’s decision. And services will more than likely start at small where it’s not a huge change.
The good thing, we won’t be noticing a difference for a while. For one, it needs to go through the different courts, especially if it gets enough votes to repeal the FCC’s decision. And services will more than likely start at small where it’s not a huge change.
Back in 2015, the federal appellate courts were the ones to save net neutrality, and hopefully it will be another win.
So, get out there and continue to fight. Whether it's on twitter to express your concerns to your senators or representatives or directly emailing or calling them. You can also text "RESIST" to 50409 to type up a quick letter to your representatives which will be sent via email with the help of Resisbot volunteers.
