Protesters typically take it to the streets, but it’s only appropriate that net neutrality proponents like Amazon, Netflix and Github take it to the internet to sound off against service provider behemoths Comcast and Verizon.
As Team Internet faces off against Team Cable on Wednesday’s “Day of Action” fighting net neutrality opposition, expect a number of websites to have a blue loading icon and the message: “Sorry, we’re stuck in the slow lane.”
That pop-up — which will not actually slow down your bandwidth for certain sites — is symbolic for what the internet could look like without existing net neutrality rules for online traffic.
Net neutrality is a regulatory framework which assures that internet service providers may not discriminate against particular legal online content by controlling bandwidth speeds.
According to Battleforthenet.com, the flagship site for Wednesday’s protest, internet service providers want to abolish net neutrality as it currently stands in hopes of seeing and controlling what users do online.
Think of it this way: without net neutralilty, Netflix could potentially pay Comcast to provide its online visitors with the fastest internet speeds, leaving Hulu — who in this scenario doesn’t fork over any extra cash — to load and load and load. Hence, the pop-up loading icon protests.
That potential for bandwidth discrimination based on content and who is paying who is the fodder for Day of Action protests, which involve a slew of popular websites.
On the other end of the battle, internet service providers say that they also believe in a free and open internet, where bandwidth is equal for every site, regardless of its content. Those companies just don’t like the strict guidelines established by former president Barack Obama in 2015.
The then-Democratic majority Federal Communications Commission voted 3-2 to put rules in place to regulate the internet like a business. The FCC began classifying broadband as a highly regulated utility-like service under Title II of Federal Communications Law.
That designation protects consumers from facing slow load times on sites that have not paid internet service providers to prioritize their speeds. It keeps everyone in the fast lane, so to speak.
Comcast, Verizon, Time Warner Cable and AT&T each have lobbied the FCC and Congress to remove that designation under Title II.
With President Donald Trump’s appointment of former Verizon executive Ajit Pai to FCC Chairman, the net neutrality debate has become an increasingly partisan issue between Democrats and Republicans.
Mr. Pai called for the repeal of the rules under Title II earlier this year, prompting an initial public comment period in April that ended Monday. Possibly due in part to a segment on “Last Week Tonight” with John Oliver, featuring a left-wing take on net neutrality and poking fun at Mr. Pai and the FCC, at least 5.6 million comments poured in.
Time will tell whether Wednesday’s protest will amount to much, as each pop-up widget provides a form to submit concerns to the FCC or members of Congress.
In any case, expect the loading symbol.
Courtney Linder: clinder@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1707. Twitter: @LinderPG.
First Published: July 12, 2017, 10:00 a.m.
Updated: July 12, 2017, 1:41 p.m.
