Domestic and international policy and regulation status of the Open Internet or Net Neutrality

Richard C. Vincent, Indiana State University <rvincent@indstate.edu>Research Topical Session 8 - Technology Drivers of Policy

Monday, 22 January, 2018

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Net NeutralityNet NeutralityNet NeutralityNet Neutrality

Source: Steve Sack, Star Tribune; https://startribune.com/opinion/cartoons. bluefletch.com/wp-

content/uploads/2017/02/net-neutrality-1-620x400.jpg

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Net NeutralityNet NeutralityNet NeutralityNet Neutrality

Source: Steve Sack, Star Tribune; https://startribune.com/opinion/cartoons. bluefletch.com/wp-

content/uploads/2017/02/net-neutrality-1-620x400.jpg

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Net Net Net Net Neutrality: Present StatusNeutrality: Present StatusNeutrality: Present StatusNeutrality: Present Status

• The latest chapter in the Net Neutrality story in the United States.

• FCC changed the Network Neutrality rules on December 13th.• “The final version dismantles popular net neutrality

protections for consumers• Few people in U.S. are happy. HuffPost/YouGov survey, 2017.

• Cecilia Kang. (Dec. 16, 2017). FCC Repeals Net Neutrality Rules. New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/14/technology/net-neutrality-repeal-vote.html

• HuffPost/YouGov survey

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Net Neutrality: Present StatusNet Neutrality: Present StatusNet Neutrality: Present StatusNet Neutrality: Present Status

• Net neutrality--the guarantee of an internet open to all, policy codified by the FCC, 2015.

• FCC Chair, Ajit Pai, wanted net neutrality gone. To “UNRECLASSIFY” ISPs and broadband (wired/wireless) as common carriers (previous classification).

• He also eliminated media ownership rules and other protections/incentives in earlier actions.

• Master plan --> strengthen control of big business in media.

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Obama’s F.C.C.Obama’s F.C.C.Obama’s F.C.C.Obama’s F.C.C.

SOURCE: A, F. Branco. (Nov. 14, 2014). Editorial cartoon, I’m from the Government. Branco

Cable Guy. https://legalinsurrection.com/tag/a-f-branco/page/20/ retrieved 10 Jan 2018.

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End of End of End of End of Civilization? Civilization? Civilization? Civilization?

End of Civilization as We Know It?

That’s how the FCC’s move was framed by CNN’s Michael Smerconish, not a liberal, more of a libertarian voice, in his weekly Saturday TV program on December 16th.

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Bandwidth RealitiesBandwidth RealitiesBandwidth RealitiesBandwidth Realities

• Some 35 percent of No. Amer. Internet traffic is coming from Netflix. YouTube uses about 18 percent, and Amazon’s streaming video 4 percent (video compression has modestly decreased usage a little in past couple years.)

• In contrast, Facebook uses about 2.5 percent.

• Put another way, greater than 70 percent of North American traffic comes from video and audio streaming services during peak hours.

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Huge Marketplace DominationHuge Marketplace DominationHuge Marketplace DominationHuge Marketplace Domination

THE SO CALLED FRIGHTFUL 5:• Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft and Alphabet (Google)

• all of value in digital world • app stores, browsers, cloud storage, data, infrastructure, new products, OSs

THE Broadbands:

• Comcast, AT&T, Verizon—both wired and wireless connections– Speed boost for streaming, other services

• Comcast & Charter—control 2/3 of all US landline broadband internet

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What is Net Neutrality?What is Net Neutrality?What is Net Neutrality?What is Net Neutrality?

• Best understood as an equal platform for Internet users.

• Users can choose applications and services they wish to use, plus content they want to access or create.

• Internet as public utility.

• ISPs provide open networks and no blocking or discriminating against any content or application.

• Same treatment for Netflix as well as cat videos and games.

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What Are the Pros of Net Neutrality?What Are the Pros of Net Neutrality?What Are the Pros of Net Neutrality?What Are the Pros of Net Neutrality?

• creates equal playing field (equal access).

• protects innovation.

• freedom of expression for all.

• classify ISPs as a utility provider.

• Prohibits Internet Providers From Censoring

• Lowers Prices For Consumers

• Gives Television Industry A Golden Age

• Illegal activities still monitored.

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What Are the Cons of Net Neutrality?What Are the Cons of Net Neutrality?What Are the Cons of Net Neutrality?What Are the Cons of Net Neutrality?

• All Internet data not equal.

• Enormous data consumed without compensation.

• Reduced income from internet limits infrastructure improvements.

• Priorities being controlled by ISPs.

• More regulations equals slower access.

• Public utilities also have problems.

• Pay same for Low-Data and High-Data Consumers

• Streaming Companies now taking Advantage of the Infrastructure

• May Slow Broadband Infrastructure Development

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It’s All about Business:It’s All about Business:It’s All about Business:It’s All about Business:

CBS CEO Les Moonves: “I don’t know if Donald Trump is good for the country.

but he’s damn good for CBS.”

• Michael Copps: “It’s all about the ideology, the world of big money, the access that the big guys have and continue to have. It’s not that the FCC outright refuses to let public interest groups through the door or anything like that; it’s just the lack of resources citizens and public interest groups have compared to what the big guys have.”

• Anon. (June 21, 2017). Maybe the Worst FCC I've Ever Seen. Plus Media Solutions.

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Provides upstart accessProvides upstart accessProvides upstart accessProvides upstart access

• Bret Swanson, American Enterprise Institute:

• big companies already have huge advantage since they have built a “massive online infrastructure”.

• argues therefore that upstarts without huge infrastructure can use “paid priority” as a way to enter the competitive market.

• Manjo, F. (May 3, 2017). Giving the Behemoths a Leg Up on the Little Guy, New York Times.

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Net neutrality is the Net neutrality is the Net neutrality is the Net neutrality is the sine qua non sine qua non sine qua non sine qua non of an open internetof an open internetof an open internetof an open internet

• Advocates and some Web countries such as Vimeo, Etsy and consumer groups getting ready to fight – want principles and regs as now exist.

• Question: How can big telecom or the FCC make a sound case to overturn what the court approved two years ago, and then go back to what the court overturned prior to that?

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So Now What Happens?So Now What Happens?So Now What Happens?So Now What Happens?

• first, members of Congress considering whether to use the same act that Donald Trump used to roll back privacy protections regulations that the Obama administration had approved, which allows 60 days for Congress to say, “Repeal those rules.” The CRA Congressional Review Act)used to roll back Obama-era legislations in early 2016

• Not likely to work with makeup of the House, unless more Republicans become involved. • Troy Wolverton. (JAN 09, 2018). The effort to block the FCC's repeal of net neutrality just hit an

important milestone. Aol.com; https://www.aol.com/article/news/2018/01/09/the-effort-to-block-the-fccs-repeal-of-net-neutrality-just-hit-an-important-milestone/23328749/

• Eric Schneiderman, New York attorney general, threatening to sue to block the repeal, and 19 states’ attorneys generals investigating, quote, “fake comments” at FCC?

• Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson plans to challenge the ruling along with Oregon, Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, others.

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Legal ChallengesLegal ChallengesLegal ChallengesLegal Challenges

• State legislators planning to introduce NN regulations at states level; Pai says he can user preemption clauses in the net neutrality repeal order.

• Other procedural missteps at FCC provoking challenges.

• Missouri's Claire McCaskill, latest senator to sign nullification effort, a consumer-rights group that supports the net-neutrality rules the FCC voted to repeal.

• The other sponsors include 29 Democrats and Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent.

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‘We Will See You in Court’‘We Will See You in Court’‘We Will See You in Court’‘We Will See You in Court’

• Netflix announces support for legal action by lobby group Internet Association.

• the Internet Association announced it would “intervene in judicial action to preserve net neutrality protections.”

• The IA plans on pushing back against the FCC’s decision last month to pull back Obama-era regulations that blocked internet providers from blocking access to particular sites, plus creating paid “fast lanes” to view content.

• Sean Burch. (Jan. 5, 2018). Netflix Comes Out in Support for Net Neutrality, Tells FCC ‘We Will See You in Court’. The Wrap. https://www.thewrap.com/netflix-comes-out-in-support-for-net-neutrality-tells-fcc-we-will-see-you-in-court/

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Players In Support of Net NeutralityPlayers In Support of Net NeutralityPlayers In Support of Net NeutralityPlayers In Support of Net Neutrality

• Amazon, Microsoft, Twitter, ACLU, Greenpeace, Free Press, MoveOn.org, Mozilla, the Authors Guild.

• Netflix, Reddit, Etsy, Dropbox, iTunes, Spotify and Pandora.

• Smaller internet service providers e.g. Ting and Sonic.

• Google is also an advocate; Facebook sometimes.• but there are suspicions Google may use end of neutrality to eliminate

rivals.

• Clint Finley. (July 11, 2017). The Who’s Who Of Net Neutrality's Day Of Action. Wired.

• Tony Romm. (July 12, 2017). Amazon, Facebook, Google and other tech giants are rallying to defend near-dead U.S. net neutrality rules

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Players Against Net NeutralityPlayers Against Net NeutralityPlayers Against Net NeutralityPlayers Against Net Neutrality

• Comcast, Verizon, AT&T, IBM, Nokia, Broadcom, Intel, other CommTech Corps.

• Apple reluctant to support NN.

• Facebook’s Free Basic Service, offering free access to select websites and services, but not the entire internet, criticized by NN advocates.

• Clint Finley. (July 11, 2017). The Who’s Who Of Net Neutrality's Day Of Action. Wired.

HTTPS://WWW.WIRED.COM/STORY/THE-WHOS-WHO-OF-NET-NEUTRALITYS-DAY-OF-ACTION/

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Why the concern?Why the concern?Why the concern?Why the concern?

• the U.S. was serving arguably as a leader of the open internet movement just 6 months ago.

• Obama: ‘Open and free internet leads to open economy and way of life’.

• Open internet ‘will launch new ideas, new political movements’. • No barriers to civil society participation—a level playing field.

• Internationally, US system has had good effect—served as good example of a Federal Model.

• Opposition argues that NN gives email, spam and telemedicine identical priorities.

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US US US US versusversusversusversus EuropeEuropeEuropeEurope

•In 2016 US and EU were quite similar in theory.

•The exception was US prohibition of paid prioritization.

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BEREC: 2015BEREC: 2015BEREC: 2015BEREC: 2015

2015 rules - guidelines published by the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC).

• Strong guidelines to the future of competition, innovation, and creative expression in Europe, enhancing ability to lead in the digital economy," ( BEREC)

• Clarified regs for internet service providers (ISPs) • treat all web traffic equally, no favor to some services over others.

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BEREC: 2015BEREC: 2015BEREC: 2015BEREC: 2015• However, several loopholes have raised concern; will allow ISPs to create "FAST LANES"

for "specialized services“

• Portuguese internet provider MEO offers smartphones with monthly data limits, then sells additional monthly packages for particular data services. ]

• NN broken with loopholes? Allows data for different services under zero rating.

• A "TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT" stipulation also allows telcos to prioritize internet traffic & some services over others.

*** Zero Rating - ‘Zero-rating’ - when an ISP applies price of zero to the data traffic associated with a particular application or class of applications

Hern, Alex (27 October 2015). EU net neutrality laws fatally undermined by loopholes, critics say. The Guardian. from the original on 13 February 2016. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/oct/27/eu-net-neutrality-laws-fatally-undermined-by-loopholes-critics-say

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EU and Others, 2013EU and Others, 2013EU and Others, 2013EU and Others, 2013----16161616

• Proposals in EU

• internet services to prioritize traffic.• Sept. 2013 Telecoms Single Market (“TSM”) legislative proposals,

Council and Parliament. Passed Oct. 2015 (Regulation 2015/2120)

• Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC) released report, 2016. Bans paid prioritization of network traffic.

• Lobbyists, of course, trying still to kill open net rules and rulemaking. Deutsche Telekom, Orange SA and Vodafone against EU neutrality rules.

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EU and OthersEU and OthersEU and OthersEU and Others

• Chile, Netherlands, India, Slovenia, Hungary, Sweden, Russia and Brazil have forms of net neutrality; also Norway, not an EU member)

• India, 2016; Netherlands, 2012; Slovenia, 2012; Russia, 2016.

• Some want single UN agency in sole control.

• US also has WTO protections under the Basic Agreement on Trade and Telecommunications Services (BAT).

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Netherlands Netherlands Netherlands Netherlands CrtCrtCrtCrt decision adds confusiondecision adds confusiondecision adds confusiondecision adds confusion

• However, in April 2017:

• Dutch Court struck down the May 2016 Netherlands legislation that specifically prohibited the no price discrimination policy.

• Crt stated that When T-Mobile allows its customers free access to some services but not to others, they create a strong incentive to use one service over another, even if the alternative might be “better”.

This Crt. decision not only affects the Netherlands but also the rest of Europe.

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Across EuropeAcross EuropeAcross EuropeAcross Europe

• More than 20 telecoms — including Vodafone, BT, Orange SA and Deutsche Telekom — released "manifesto", saying they would not introduce high-speed 5G networks unless BEREC took a softer approach to net neutrality.

• ISPs in Europe and the US have argued that aggressive net neutrality regulations would harm their business.

• There have been some problems with Telco Authority PTS cracking down on unmetered ISP traffic such as Facebook, Spotify and HBO-GO but metering other traffic. Such 2-tier system not allowed in Europe or presently the US.

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Arguably, U.SArguably, U.SArguably, U.SArguably, U.S. served as a leader in open internet just . served as a leader in open internet just . served as a leader in open internet just . served as a leader in open internet just oooonnnneeee

month month month month agoagoagoago

• Intellectual Commons – democratic government of knowledge for common good.

• A shared resource – collective responsibility• Goes beyond individual rights and market-oriented world view.

• Equitable access

• Essential services

• Changing role of intellectual property – knowledge creation and sharing

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Other Issues?Other Issues?Other Issues?Other Issues?

• Higher consumer costs?

• Netflix, YouTube, Amazon – top 3 content providers

• Online gaming and VR industry

• sports

• 71 % of N. American evening traffic is audio and video streaming; 80% by 2020.

• Fast lane – Slow lane.

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Net Neutrality and Cat VideosNet Neutrality and Cat VideosNet Neutrality and Cat VideosNet Neutrality and Cat Videos

Source: Glenn Foden. (Mar. 2, 2015). Editorial cartoon. Net Neutrality and Cat Videos;

http://dailysignal.com/2015/03/02/cartoon-net-neutrality-cat-videos/

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Sources Sources Sources Sources ---- 1111

• Anon. (June 21, 2017). Maybe the Worst FCC I've Ever Seen. Plus Media Solutions.

• Anon. (May 17, 2017). Dutch ban on zero-rating struck on own – major blow to net neutrality. https://edri.org/dutch-ban-on-zero-rating-struck-down-major-blow-to-net-neutrality/

• Anon. (May 2, 2017). Court lets net neutrality rule stand. The Hill. http://thehill.com/policy/technology/331368-federal-court-lets-net-neutrality-regulations-stand

• Anon. (April 29, 2017). F.C.C. Invokes Internet Freedom While Trying to Kill It? Editorial. New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/29/opinion/sunday/fcc-invokes-internet-freedom-while-trying-to-kill-it.html

• Anon. (Oct 17, 2015). Tim Berners-Lee call for EU to kill ‘Online Fast Lanes’ ahead of Net Neutrality Vote. Progressive Media. Lexus-Nexus.

• Anon. (June 15, 2016). Rules for Fair Internet Access Win in Court. Telegram & Gazette Worcester, MA. Associated Press story. Lexus-Nexus.

• Beca, K. (April 2017). Losing net neutrality. Mix. Mixonline.com.

• Branco, A. F. (Nov. 14, 2014). Editorial cartoon, I’m from the Government. Branco Cable Guy. https://legalinsurrection.com/tag/a-f-branco/page/20/ retrieved 10 Jan 2018.

• Edgerton, J. (May 1-8, 2017). Title (II) fight over net neutrality brews again. Broadcasting & Cable. Broadcasting&cbale.com

• finley, C. (July 11, 2017). The Who’s Who Of Net Neutrality's Day Of Action. Wired. https://www.wired.com/story/the-whos-who-of-net-neutralitys-day-of-action/

• Foden, G. (Mar. 2, 2015). Editorial cartoon. Net Neutrality and Cat Videos; http://dailysignal.com/2015/03/02/cartoon-net-neutrality-cat-videos/

• Fung, B, (Oct. 16, 2016). What Trump’s stance on Tech Might Look Lick. Editorial. Chicago Daily Herald. https://www.highbeam.com/publications/daily-herald-arlington-heights-il-p5444/oct-16-2016

• Hern, A. (27 October 2015). EU net neutrality laws fatally undermined by loopholes, critics say. The Guardian. from the original on 13 February 2016. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/oct/27/eu-net-neutrality-laws-fatally-undermined-by-loopholes-critics-say

• HuffPost/YouGov survey, 2017.

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Sources Sources Sources Sources ---- 2222

• HuffPost/YouGov survey, 2017.

• Kan, C. (Dec. 16, 2017). FCC Repeals Net Neutrality Rules. Mew York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/14/technology/net-neutrality-repeal-vote.html

• Manjo, F. (May 3, 2017). Giving the Behemoths a Leg Up on the Little Guy, New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/03/technology/net-neutrality-fcc-giving-behemoths-leg-up.html

• Neidig, H. (April 5, 2017). Fight gives hope for net neutrality advocates. The Hill.

• Romm, T. (July 12, 2017). Amazon, Facebook, Google and other tech giants are rallying to defend near-dead U.S. net neutrality rules;https://www.recode.net/2017/7/12/15957130/amazon-facebook-google-tech-giants-rallying-defend-net-neutrality-rules-fcc-ajit-pai-vote-day-action

• Sack,S. (2017). Editorial cartoon. Star Tribune; https://startribune.com/opinion/cartoons. bluefletch.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/net-neutrality-1-620x400.jpg

• Toor, A. (2016, Aug 30). Europe's net neutrality guidelines seen as a victory for the open web. The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2016/8/30/12707590/eu-net-neutrality-rules-final-guidelines-berec

• Wasserman, D. (2017) Editorial cartoon. Boston globe; Boston Globe.com/Wasserman; https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2014/04/29/editorial-cartoon-ending-net-neutrality/ZaqTtoUibp4wBNoIHjUM8K/story.html

• Wolverton, T. (Jan 09, 2018). The effort to block the FCC's repeal of net neutrality just hit an important milestone. Aol.com; https://www.aol.com/article/news/2018/01/09/the-effort-to-block-the-fccs-repeal-of-net-neutrality-just-hit-an-important-milestone/23328749

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AppendixAppendixAppendixAppendixNN by country details:

• The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) banned differential pricing of data services in 2016.

• The National Congress of Chili amended its telecommunications law to preserve network neutrality, the first country world-wide to do so, in 2010.[58]

• The Netherlands, noted above, was first country in Europe and the second worldwide, after Chile, to enact a network neutrality law in 2012.

• Slovenia passed law of electronic communication establishing principle of net neutrality in late 2012, the second European country to enact a NN law.

• Federal Antimonopoly Service approved a regulation blocking ISPs from throttling or otherwise blocking any websites apart from those blocked at the request of the in in early 2016. NN thus protected in Russia.