the FCC won’t let me be… No Eminem, it’s Google and Verizon
Google and Verizon has come together to threaten net neutrality. Lets expect the worst and hope for the best!
Google is such a juggernaut that it’s rather easy for internet users to single-out Google as demons like Eric Schmidt with a handlebar mustache that he tweaks in order to plot his next diabolical scheme. It wasn’t too long ago when Schmidt was preaching net neutrality and pushing the government to ensure its existence in a note to Google users.
The Internet as we know it is facing a serious threat. There’s a debate heating up in Washington, DC on something called “net neutrality” – and it’s a debate that’s so important Google is asking you to get involved. We’re asking you to take action to protect Internet freedom.
In the next few days, the House of Representatives is going to vote on a bill that would fundamentally alter the Internet. That bill, and one that may come up for a key vote in the Senate in the next few weeks, would give the big phone and cable companies the power to pick and choose what you will be able to see and do on the Internet.
Today the Internet is an information highway where anybody – no matter how large or small, how traditional or unconventional – has equal access. But the phone and cable monopolies, who control almost all Internet access, want the power to choose who gets access to high-speed lanes and whose content gets seen first and fastest. They want to build a two-tiered system and block the on-ramps for those who can’t pay.
Fortunately, Google informed concerned users over their talks with Verizon in their public policy blog, which seemed rather harmless, although I’m still skeptical. First, Google and Verizon shouldn’t be telling the FCC what their policies should be even if the FCC has little insight on what is best for consumers. Having two powerhouse companies outlining these laws will make the FCC a mere puppet. While Google’s past and principles leads me to believe they have the best intentions, Verizon seems to be setting their sights on a tiered system. If they’re doing away with the unlimited data plan for cellphones, I can see them enforcing a similar system for internet.
Also, these companies have the power to control the internet and what would they do if they use that power for evil rather than good? It seems like an easy switch to knock out competition and elevate your company. At the end of the day, I have very little trust in companies who have the capability of controlling the future of the internet.
