For years, there has been no shortage of talk about net neutrality, and the conversation is to reach its peak. The debate on the Internet should be an open platform or if it is subject to political whims and large companies is that impacts people worldwide.
On February 26, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will be a vote on net neutrality. A previous article on the Blog Hotspot Shield delved into the details of this vote, but we have not yet discussed the ramifications worldwide potential of it. Where other countries are now on net neutrality, and is it likely to change after the FCC makes its decision?
Chile led the way, followed by the Netherlands
Back in 2010, when the United States was just beginning to tinker with the idea of net neutrality as an FCC proposal failed, Chile became the first country to adopt net neutrality as official policy. The regulations in Chile also cover things like parental controls, network security, and protection against viruses.
How modern Chilean laws on neutrality arrived net? It started when lobbyists have used a series of tests which revealed that one of the Internet operators in the country, VTR, intentionally slowed peer-to-peer communication. In fact, this activity was already illegal, but the attention that lobbyists contributed to the incident prompted the new legislation.
Something similar happened in the Netherlands, which was the second country to embrace net neutrality officially. As explained in the Tech Policy Daily, "net neutrality rules were adopted in Parliament in just two months from the time that KPN (the incumbent) revealed that he could use deep packet inspection (DPI ) to monetize users WhatsApp. DPI was already illegal in the Netherlands ... But the incident has turned into a frenzy of publicity and politicians took the podium as consumer advocates. "
The European position on net neutrality
calls' the Netherlands action on net neutrality is impressive considering how the rest of the Union European addressed the issue. The debate began there more than a decade, and is still ongoing. Because net neutrality appears to be good on the surface, why the manifest Europe such hesitation?
The answer lies in the conflicting priorities of Europe. On the one hand, the EU wants businesses to thrive and stimulate economic growth in the Union. On the other hand, the real net neutrality would limit the power of ISPs and may in turn impede the progress of large innovative companies. The EU is still trying to find the right balance
The current Europe
policyEU relations with net neutrality was something of a complex dance -. Or you can set it as more of a roller coaster. Shifting policies and the task of weighing the welfare of consumers against the economic well-being led to the current policy of Europe. Basically, their approach is that ISPs should be reasonable in how they manage their networks, taking into account both their own interests and the interests of Internet users.
As Financier Worldwide explains it, the current policy "recommends that the approach taken is somewhere between a lighter approach to an extreme, one that aims to eliminate the market power to promote consumer awareness, increase transparency and reduce costs for end users switching to the other. "
Is this really a viable approach? Perhaps the officials believe that if an ISP blocks certain websites or content delivers a slower than others, disgruntled consumers can always switch to another provider, so there is not need more regulation . This line of thought seems like a slippery slope and puts a lot of trust in large companies.
Stringent Regulations of Mexico
Of course, Mexico is the first country to come to mind when you think of tech-savvy nations, but Mexico is actually something a model for net neutrality. They have one of the strictest policies in the world, and they consider Internet access as a human right.
Some Internet rules in Mexico are not dissimilar to the rules that the FCC will vote at the end of this month. The regulations include things like not allowing ISPs to discriminate between different types of content while allowing ISPs to manage their networks, so that content is delivered in the most efficient manner possible. ISPs who refuse to comply with the rules can face fines equal to one to three percent of total service provider business.
The rules of Mexico are part of all laws. If the FCC passes net neutrality rules proposed, they will not be official laws. However, Congress can affect legislation on the issue later.
The power of the example of the United States
Back in 2010, shortly after the first failed attempt FCC regulations passage of net neutrality, an analyst principal policy for the Center for Democracy and Technology, said: "I think there is a case that the United States remains a model for Internet policy for the world. Not having here can make it less likely to have in other places. "Indeed, net neutrality has been slow progress worldwide since 2010. Of course, it would be presumptuous to say that it is because the US has not a set of regulations, but it could certainly be a factor.
the future of net neutrality, particularly in Europe, could feel the impact of the imminent FCC vote. If the proposal is adopted, the EU will have a framework that can use when they consider future policy changes
the Road Ahead
the Internet is a public domain, and the question of who should control -. and what control they should have - is a powerful subject. It seems likely that the FCC will pass the proposed net neutrality, but what happens after? are ISPs adapt and embrace change, or the willingness of large companies continue to fight net neutrality? We look forward to know.
The most important consequences of the vote are those that occur outside US borders. Countries that already have network neutrality regulations may rethink, while countries that lack rules may reconsider
Cyberspace is as much a part of daily life for some people that are the electricity and roads. it is part of a major international infrastructure. Therefore it is safe to say that the debate surrounding the opening of the Internet will continue to have a significant global impact.
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