The Federal Liberal party seem to support net neutrality. Net what? Most people including those who use the web on a daily basis don’t know what net neutrality is and what the implications are from both sides of this great debate.What the heck is net neutrality anyway?
This is a common definition of net neutrality:
“Net Neutrality is the principle that consumers should be in control of what content, services and applications they use on the public Internet.”
It sounds pretty basic and many of us make use of this control everyday. Google what ever you want and then go to those sites that are the results of your search. Don’t like Google? Use Bing or Yahoo or whatever search engine you want. Visit what ever site you want. That’s the basic principle. So what’s the big deal?
The large telecom companies who provide us with our internet connections, known as ISPs or internet service providers are seeking legislation that will allow them to move from just providing the ‘pipe’ that we use to access the internet to controlling the content or stuff you access on the web. In effect giving you access to what they want you to view and not what you want. For them it’s a great opportunity to increase their revenue by shaping content availability similar to what is done with cable and satellite television feeds.
If you’re interested in learning more:
BRASSmedia Canada 