[CAnet - news] At Stake: The Internet as We Know It

Begin forwarded message:


[Two good postings from Dave Farber's IP list on the future evolution of the
Internet as a result of the Internet being declared an information service
and therefore not subject to open access requirements on DSL and cable in
the US.  (For the record I support the FCC's de-regulation of DSL & Cable.
The problem of Internet freedom and openness is real - but believe there are
much better market mechanisms available to fix the problem). Some excerpts
-- BSA]


From: Dewayne Hendricks 

At Stake: The Net as We Know It

<http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/dec2005/ 
tc20051215_141991.htm>

Google et al fear broadband carriers will tie up traffic with new  
tolls and controls. Ultimately, it could mean a world of Internet  
haves and have-nots

The Internet has always been a model of freedom. Today the Web is  
flourishing because anyone can click to any site or download any  
service they want on an open network. But now the phone and cable  
companies that operate broadband networks have a different vision. If  
they get their way, today's Information Highway could be laden with  
tollgates, express lanes, and traffic tie-ups -- all designed to make  
money for the network companies.

That prospect is the worst nightmare of Internet stars such as Google  
(GOOG ) , Amazon (AMZN ), and eBay (EBAY ). They're gearing up for a  
clash with the phone and cable giants early next year as Congress  
begins to redraft the telecom laws for the broadband era. The  
Internet gang fears that unless they get lawmakers to intervene, the  
network operators will soon be able to put a chokehold on the Web.  
"The issue is about the future of the Internet," says Alan Davidson,  
Google's Washington policy counsel.

INTERNET FIEFDOMS?  Most phone and cable companies are no longer  
content just to sell Web access to consumers. After investing in high- 
speed pipes, they also want to peddle more lucrative products, such  
as Internet-delivered TV programs, movies, and phone calls. "Building  
these networks is expensive," says Link Hoewing, vice-president for  
Internet policy at Verizon Communications (VZ ). "If I can find new  
ways to pay for this network, it's gravy for everyone."

But selling those extras puts the phone and cable companies in  
competition with Web services big and small. The network operators  
could block consumers from popular sites such as Google, Amazon, or  
Yahoo! (YHOO ) in favor of their own. Or they could degrade delivery  
of Web pages whose providers don't pay extra. Google's home page, for  
instance, might load at a creep, while a search engine backed by the  
network company would zip along.

... in a Nov. 7 interview with BusinessWeek Onlne, AT&T CEO Edward  
Whitacre Jr. declared: "What [Google, Vonage, and others] would like  
to do is to use my pipes free. But I ain't going to let them do  
that." Whitacre and AT&T argue that they need flexibility to exact a  
toll from Web services that hog bandwidth.


Can we still say that nobody owns the Internet?
By Andy ORAM

http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/wlg/8785

Companies have been trying to position themselves at choke holds and
manipulate the Internet since it became commercialized; opponents can invoke
regulatory power and antitrust law to fight them.

This month, local phone companies revealed a far-reaching change to Internet
access. These companies, who control the line into the Internet users' homes
(usually through ADSL connections over traditional telephone wires) want to
create varying levels of service for Internet content of their choice.

They plan to reserve high-speed connections for content they serve up, or
that they accept from entertainment firms and other commercial companies
willing to pay. All other content (originating from sites such as this one,
the American Reporter) will receive poorer service.

And if the phone companies can do it, cable companies (the other major
providers of Internet service to end-users) could very well start doing it
too.

...

I don't think we need to panic over the two-tier Internet. Attempts to
monopolize the Internet have failed before, and there are many factors in
both the business and the legal frameworks to prevent it from happening
again. We will always experience tensions between business models and the
public good. But it's clear that, around the world, people want their
Internet. Ultimately they'll get it.

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