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5 Questions, Answers on 'Net Neutrality'TMCnet News (Associated Press (News - Alert) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) WASHINGTON (AP) - The U.S. Federal Communications Commission is considering whether Internet providers should be allowed to cut deals with online services like Netflix, Amazon or YouTube to move their content faster. It's a topic that has attracted record-setting public attention. The agency received 3.7 million comments on the subject - more than double the number filed to the regulatory agency after Janet Jackson's infamous 'wardrobe malfunction' at the 2004 Super Bowl.
A: Net neutrality (News - Alert) is the idea that Internet service providers shouldn't block, manipulate or slow data moving across their networks. So long as content isn't against the law, such as child pornography or pirated music, a file posted on one site will load generally at the same speed as a similarly sized file on another site. Proponents say this concept is critical to encouraging innovation and competition because it means anyone can connect to the Internet and provide a service or content without having to get permission from broadband providers or pay extra. A: Yes, but not everyone agrees on how to define it. Major cable and telecom companies that sell Internet access often tout the benefits of an open Internet, saying they would lose business if their customers tried to access popular content and couldn't get it. Another problem would be retaliation. Verizon (News - Alert) subsidiaries, for example, regularly send traffic over the networks of rival Internet service providers. It doesn't want to block or slow traffic any more than it wants to see its own traffic blocked or slowed, company officials have told regulators. A: Last January, a federal court overturned key portions of an open Internet regulation put in place by the Federal Communications Commission in 2010. The court said the FCC had 'failed to cite any statutory authority' to keep broadband providers from blocking or discriminating against content. A: Last May, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler released a proposal that leaves the door open for paid agreements between Internet service providers and content providers - also called 'paid prioritization' - so long as the agreements are 'commercially reasonable.' Wheeler says the FCC would step in if broadband providers act unfairly, such as providing favored access to a subsidiary. A: The FCC is still sifting through the record-setting 3.7 million comments filed by the public before the Sept. 15 deadline. In the meantime, the agency is hosting several 'roundtables' to hear from stakeholders, and lawmakers have convened hearings in Congress. |