Outside Source
As net neutrality faces renewed threats, decentralized internet infrastructure emerges as a promising solution to safeguard digital freedoms and ensure equal access for all.
Opinion
Opinion by: Stuart Gardner, CEO of Spacecoin
The cat-and-mouse game between net neutrality and the Federal Communications Commission, the US communications regulator, continues after a federal appeals court in the country once again struck down rules to protect consumers’ unrestricted access to the internet.
This precarious position of net neutrality in one of the largest supposed free markets in the world highlights the vulnerabilities of centralized internet infrastructure, where corporate interests and regulatory scrutiny exercise outsized control on how a user accesses the internet.
Tech and policy leaders must address these growing threats by pursuing decentralized, permissionless internet access as a sustainable solution to safeguard digital freedoms, prevent corporate gatekeeping and ensure accessibility for all users.
Why net neutrality matters
Net neutrality is the idea that all internet traffic should be treated equally. Whether it is a video on the streaming giant YouTube or a niche service like Mubi, internet service providers (ISPs) have to provide the same streaming speed and quality to users. It keeps the internet and the content and services based on it open and freely accessible to all.
Without net neutrality rules, an ISP could create “fast lanes” for specific content and services. For example, AT&T could provide its users with faster access to HBO and throttle the speed of its competitor, Netflix. AT&T previously owned HBO and now offers it to its customers under an agreement with its new owners, Warner Bros. Discovery. In the case of fast lanes, consumers would have to pay more to access HBO competitor Netflix at a higher speed and with better video quality.
This article first appeared at Cointelegraph.com News
