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Since the birth of the internet, service providers have maintained ‘net neutrality’. This means they treat all websites equally and do not favour particular sites, or restrict others.
However, in the UK there is no official legislation on net neutrality, meaning internet service providers could potentially charge their clients premium prices for a top tier service, whilst restricting other content and even blocking the sites of competitors.
Many UK service providers are now demanding that official legislation is set out by the government in order to safeguard net neutrality. Companies including ebay, skype and yahoo! sent an open letter to MP Ed Vaizey demanding that the government safeguards the web from ‘discriminatory business practices’. The letter also recommends that internet service provision should be regulated by Ofcom.
Father of the Internet Tim Berners Lee called for new neutrality legislation at a recent Government round table discussion. A representative from BT argued that it should be left to the Service Provider to deliver ‘adequate neutrality protection’, but Berners Lee disagreed, insisting that if net neutrality were to truly work, it must be regulated by the government and by Ofcom.
Ed Vaizey, minister of culture announced in November that he would back plans for a ‘two speed’ internet which would allow service providers to charge companies for ‘fast lane’ access. Vaizey commented that service providers must be free to experiment with charges in order to pay for the expansion and development of the internet service. Critics are warning that a move towards ‘two speed’ internet could stifle innovation and blow some businesses out of the water.
It is expected that the government will favour a lightly regulated approach over the strict regulations which many providers are demanding. The final plans for net neutrality regulations will be announced later this year.
From Lucy Pitt at www.thebluecube.com
