"Net neutrality" is the principle that all Internet sites should be equally accessible to any Web user. (AP)The US Justice Department issued a statement to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last September 6 that it cautions against regulations enforcing Net Neutrality and that it should allow Internet providers leeway to charge differently for "priority" traffic.
The statement was made based on the presumption that Network Neutrality would prevent additional investments and further development of providers' networks.
From what I gather in the reports the Justice Department is taking a hands-off stance on the issue. Something like, "let ISPs charge what they want - if the market avails the service then its settled, if not then so be it."
The move is seen by Neutrality advocates like SaveTheInternet.com to be one step closer to empowering Internet providers to become "gatekeepers" of the Web. For Internet pioneers like Sir Tim Berners-Lee, they have always envisioned an open Internet model.
In other parts of the world, like China and certain countries in the Middle East, Internet censorship is being practiced. Will a similar scenario exist for a two-tiered Internet?
In a way it is similar to free TV and Cable at the ISP level. Are you then willing to pay more to access particular web content which you would have otherwise been able to access in the first place?
Are we living in a one-web-world no more?
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