Better sooner than later: Republican from Maine, Senator Olympia Snowe and a Democrat from North Dakota, Senator Byron Dorgan got together their efforts and once again have put forth a measure aiming for Internet Neutrality, even though the bill was killed last year in the Senate.
This bill has eliminated the power of the companies that have control to Internet access and gives more freedom to the consumers. This is exactly what Snowe meant in her speech.
The point of the measure is that large companies like Verizon and AT&T should not have the power of deciding the order of “searches’ listings” based on the amount of money they invest.
The heads of Verizon and AT&T and other large companies feel that they deserve preferential treatment on websites because they have spent a great deal of money on their infrastructures. This issue that wasn’t important resurfaces once again this year.
Such famous and affluent people like actress Alyssa Milano and Vint Cerf, who was one of the people having begun the development of the Internet, along with the regular users of the Internet asking for Government’s involvement to prevent big Internet service providers from dictating their rules. All these people want to have free choice to use the Internet in different directions. There is another opinion that goes against such involvement of the Government: opposers assert that they don’t want to change anything because it might bind the hands of new solution. Nobody is breaking the rules, they also say.
The proposed law of Sens. Olympia Snowe and Byron Dakota is going to help users who have to utilize the additional equipment to take care of their Internet connection: to protect or to strengthen the signal of it. Regular users wouldn’t be depending on any network operator limitation for the full access to the Internet.
The bill argues that all types of consumers of Telecommunication companies shouldn’t pay any money for exercising use of the Internet while these companies organize information according to their needed priority. If one of the network operators suddenly wanted to create a specific line to provide the place for media materials, for example, this place must allow storing of all types of media of every Internet user around the world without the user paying a fee.
In addition, the Senators’ document warns that all providers of the dedicated Internet service have to give a chance to any user to buy its own independent high-speed access to the Internet. The Federal Communications Commission has to care about all inconsistencies according to the Senate re-emerged proposal that would appear during its introduction.
Unfortunately, the Senate and FCC have divisive opinions about AT&T regulations of the Net neutrality during their uniting with BellSouth. AT&T wanted to help to solve the problem with the consideration of the bill, but it still rejects the use of the Net neutrality as a guideline for its activity.
The Republican Party didn’t consider the Net neutrality as a global set of rules they should follow. It was contrary to the opposite decision of two Republicans, Chairman Kevin Martin and Commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate, who are participating in the voting.
The new bill proposed by the two Senators Olympia Snowe and Byron Dorgan was rejected by telephone companies too soon. AT&T and Verizon were in the first row of the companies who didn’t agree with its rules.
The president of the U.S. Telecom Association, Walter McCormick, argued about investing money for the idea of playing with the order of the information that network operators have. He was confident about the fact that people wouldn’t pay attention to this project because the Government would prohibit it. In his speech McCormick added that this interdiction would minimize the development of home services such as health programs, finance operations, entertaining and communicating solutions, etc.
Consumers’ unions received the opportunity of the re-emergence of the bill. Owing to the fact that six Democrats such as Sens. Barbara Boxer, John Kerry, Tom Harkin, Patrick Leahy, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama – but Snowe – invest their money to the campaign, the re-emergence became possible.
The member of the Consumers Union, Jeannine Kenney, was invited to the discussion. She reminded in the interview that this law proposal would be the beginning of the freedom of all Internet users of all levels of wealth. Free access to the Internet is giving to everybody the chance to get their own goals effectively.
The attempt to pass the bill was made again by Democrats. They wanted to give equal rights for all kinds of users to have good access to the Internet. This year the bill is giving hope to meet appropriate requirements.
The House of Representatives wants to show their version of Net neutrality that was rejected by Republicans last year, but nobody knows yet when it will happen.
I suppose the Government’s obligation is to help the people have everything they need, but not to go around in endless discussions about whether the Republicans’ bill or Democrats’ bill is meeting the Senate requirements. There are a lot of more important things such as gas prices and lack of oil needed for producing enough. I think that without the gas the price of electricity will go up. Scientists have to invent new sources of energy. This will lead to an increasing importance in the development of the Internet services and making them affordable for every type of user from movie stars to a regular truck driver. Otherwise, we would get a new revolution where people can show their power and get all they want by forcing the Government with their angry power.
