This is not good.  Not good at all.  People living in rural areas will feel the sting the most.  This is a big giveaway to Comcast, Verizon and AT&T.  And so, the march toward plutocratic oligarchy continues. 

Trump and the R-Tribe are putting the transition on the fast track.

What does this mean for you, me and your favorite app? The most likely outcome, say net neutrality advocates, is that prices will go up, variety and diversity will go down and the largest, best-capitalized Internet companies will gain a significant advantage over upstart competitors.

It's a punishing blow to believers in the founding dream of the Internet as a great equalizer, a network that grants everyone free rein to do anything.

"There are going to be fast lanes and slow lanes," says Gigi Sohn, a longtime public-interest advocate and telecom analyst who served as counsel to Wheeler during the 2015 net-neutrality fight, during which a broad coalition of Internet companies and online advocacy groups convinced both the White House and Wheeler that net neutrality was crucial, not just to a free Internet, but also to a thriving Internet economy.

"As a consumer, that means some of your favorite websites are going to load more slowly, and it also may mean some of your favorite content goes away because the provider just can't pay the fee."

"You are no longer going to be the one in control," says Sohn. "Comcast, AT&T and Verizon will pick and choose the winners and losers, instead of you choosing winners and losers."

Last edited by Just Fred (12/14/2017 4:31 pm)