Net Neutrality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Net Neutrality - Essay Example â€Å"How, What, Impossible,† many would say, when they know that today internet providers have the capability of controlling what everyone goes through, does and believes in for the purpose of getting profit i.e., violate network neutrality. Discussion Internet is at war as one of its basic structural principles is threatened. Telecommunication companies are pressuring major political institutions to intervene and modify neutrality. Users and native internet companies are defending tooth and nail. The debate is open, but the reality is that most people affected by the violation of this principle know its meaning and implications (wiseGEEK, 2003). Companies and Net Neutrality The net neutrality means that bits are not discriminated, and there is no such thing as first or second class for such categories as destination, source, protocol or content. From this definition it follows that any company that provides internet services (ISPs) can manipulate, manage, hinder or prevent u ser access to some Internet services according to their specific interests. Telecommunication companies control access and transport network information. Undoubtedly, Internet service providers are identified as the main threat. Operators have proposed prioritizing some services over others, and some even speak of the payment of â€Å"tolls† and quotas to companies that fill the web content. According to a research it is clear that "The telecom operators want to do much more business with internet by increasing the charges for access as well as monetizing the content that others want to view as if it was their own network. Another goal of the ISP would "limit services (such as IP telephony or video conferencing) within their networks and extract revenues from people who earn a lot of money on the Web, like Google." (Quora, 2010) They provide the â€Å"data pipes† ensuring that any person [at a price] can connect and access all network resources. Currently, these entiti es hold true to a â€Å"code of honor† that prevents them from taking control of the content by these ways. This code means net neutrality: all content and services distributed through the pipes must be treated equally, regardless of person or entity (Quora, 2010). Neutrality still seems intact, but many users report behaviors of operators that already violate this basic principle of the network and most of the information highway studies confirm the dirty war of the companies providing internet against p2p networks. But network neutrality is not limited to a dispute over the division of the economic pie concerning technology or the battle against piracy but it is a concept that has entered the political game. According to some studies, the ISPs will accompany some European governments, in matters concerning the net transfer of money to the other side of the Atlantic in areas such as digital advertising. Perhaps for this reason, politicians have not been clear. There is no co mmunity legislation regarding Network Neutrality (Quora, 2010). The problem is that this policy is not neutrally supported by any law or regulated by any relevant entity. Therefore, their survival depends on "common sense" of users and, primarily, the network providers. The latter is the source of danger as the common sense of the big companies is generally shaped by the opportunities to make money and it can’t be ruled out at some point that they may take control of internet