Net neutrality is a hot topic for today’s generation. There is no set definition for net neutrality, but it can be defined as equal treatment and access for users of the internet. One way to achieve this is by creating a tiered internet. A debate has opened on both sides of creating a tiered system.
Some of the pros for creating a tiered internet are that it will allow more internet providers to start up, thus increasing broadband service throughout the country. This action would eventually lead to broadband service being available as much as telephone service. Having a tiered system would also allow providers to offer different levels of service at different fees. This can be both good and bad. The good aspect of it would be if your a person who uses the internet for just searching the internet and checking email, you might subscribe to a lower level of service for a smaller fee and just the opposite if your a gamer or avid downloader of large files. This system may also help internet providers stop cutting back a users internet connection, because they are using too much bandwidth my downloading large files or playing games. The bad aspect is explained in the next paragraph.
Some of the cons of having a tiered internet are by having different levels of service for different fees, it could limit competition. Smaller providers that are not as financially secure will find it difficult to provide higher levels of service and thus, can go out of business. To add on to this, larger companies, such as AOL, then have a good deal of control over the internet and can limit what a user is allowed to do. For instance, the internet provider may not want to allow certain applications or website to be accessed by their users, which can be frustrating for the user. Also by having different levels of service, applications can be blocked. So if you subscribe to a lower level of service, you may not be able to access websites such as youtube.com because the applications that run the site are not allowed with your service. What all this does is causes a free internet to become almost a dictatorship, where internet providers have control of what you access, which goes against the grain of what the internet is all about.
Overall, I believe a tiered internet system can be a good thing if it is handled properly. At the moment, really only two types of companies are internet providers, which are cable and telephone companies. There really is no law that provides a set of standards that these companies have to adhere to, so they are pretty much given free rein on what they can do, to an extent. Bills, such as the Telecommunications Act of 1996 have begun to help set these standards. By allowing more businesses to become internet providers you help technology evolve. These companies may find a new way of providing the internet or how it is accessed. If Microsoft was the only software company that provided an operating system where do you think we would be today? Probably, not as far was we’ve come with operating systems. Mainly, we need to keep the internet an open world of information that can be accessed by anyone.
