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Net Neutrality and Internet Freedom

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="160638" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="FCC">FCC</keyword> Chairman <keyword id="1702548" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Ajit-Pai">Ajit Pai</keyword> will step down on January 20, 2021.</li><li>Pai was controversial for his role in repealing <keyword id="6391709" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Net-neutrality">net neutrality</keyword> rules.</li><li>Online reactions showed that people expect a relitigation of net neutrality under a Biden-appointed FCC chairman. </li></ul>Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai announced that he plans to step down on January 20, 2021, the day <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/11/30/21726572/ajit-pai-fcc-step-down-date-trump-telecom-net-neutrality">Joe Biden will be inaugurated.</a>Pai was appointed to the role by President Trump in 2017, after previously <a href="https://variety.com/2020/digital/news/fcc-ajit-pai-leave-january-2021-biden-president-1234842166/">serving as commissioner</a> under the Obama administration. His five-year term was set to end in July 2021. Pai was a controversial figure, and under his leadership the FCC ended <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fcc-net-neutrality-repeal-will-lead-to-higher-prices-fewer-choices-2017-12">net neutrality</a> rules that had governed the internet and been encoded in 2015. In short, net neutrality is the idea that ISPs should treat all data the same, without giving preference to certain websites or slowing down others.Other notable industry developments under Pai included the merger of <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/11/30/21726572/ajit-pai-fcc-step-down-date-trump-telecom-net-neutrality">T-Mobile and Sprint</a>, and the FCC adding new anti-robocall measures.So far, not many big names in <keyword id="6358815" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="tech">tech</keyword> and privacy have reacted to the announcement. Most reactions so far indicate that people expect a renewed fight around net neutrality.Digital Rights advocacy group Fight for the Future released a <a href="https://www.fightforthefuture.org/news/2020-11-30-goodbye-ajit-pai-the-senate-should-reject-nathan/">statement</a> on "the most unpopular FCC Chairman in history" stepping down. The statement condemned Pai and emphasized the need for a "functional FCC that will quickly repair the damage done by Ajit Pai and get to work protecting the public from ISP abuses."As of 2018, a majority of registered voters were in favor of net neutrality, based on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/vast-majority-voters-against-net-neutrality-repeal-charts-2018-5">data from Statista.</a>The other main reaction found on Twitter were proponents of repealing net neutrality, mocking fears that repealing the rule would have disastrous effects.Biden has not announced any plans to replace Pai, but <a href="https://www.protocol.com/joe-biden-possible-fcc-picks">Protocol</a> put together a list of possible nominees back in September.

Ajit Pai is leaving the FCC in January, and digital rights groups are preparing to restart the fight for net neutrality

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Net neutrality is the argument that all <keyword id="6357247" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Internet">internet</keyword> service providers (<keyword id="28692" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="ISPs">ISPs</keyword>) must treat all forms of internet communication equally. </li><li>This means an ISP cannot slow down or charge more for certain services or websites while also promoting others. </li><li>The Federal Communications Commission passed a net neutrality law in 2015, but it was quickly dismantled under the Trump administration. </li><li>Proponents of net neutrality have long championed a free and open internet, saying an internet without prohibition is essential for innovation and healthy competition.</li></ul><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/net-neutrality">Network neutrality</a> is the concept that the internet must remain free, open, and without restriction, regardless of where or how you access it. In short, net neutrality means that any and all data should be treated equally when it jumps from cell tower to cell tower, not delayed, accelerated, or blocked. But as it stands now, that's not how it works. <keyword id="67974" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="telecommunications">Telecommunications</keyword> companies get a say over how fast, or how slow, certain bits of content make their way to your smartphone, tablet, computer, or TV, which net neutrality proponents believe to be infringing on freedom of speech by enabling easy access to some networks and not others. Advocates of net neutrality say <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/isps">internet service providers</a> (ISPs) should be required to uphold certain rules to promote competition, or else some ISPs may start charging companies to retain preferential treatment on their networks, squashing all those who cannot afford to pay to play. This could possibly lead to ISP users paying extra to view content on Facebook and YouTube, for example. The internet was created before the concept of net neutrality existed. With this knowledge in mind and the fact that the internet market has drastically changed since the early 2000s, some opponents of net neutrality argue that it unfairly benefits giants like Facebook, Google, and Amazon and cuts into investment. ISPs are not the only players anymore, although it is widely understood that these broadbands have been known to play the market by taking advantage of their power. The ongoing source of debate is how much federal legislation should have to do with regulating the internet, and whether it is necessary for economic growth and market competition. <h2>A brief history of net neutrality</h2>The term "net neutrality" was first coined in 2003 by Columbia University professor Tim Wu, who wrote a paper about how ISPs like AT&amp;T and Comcast were prohibiting certain technologies, such as virtual private networks and Wi-Fi routers, from being used with the service they offered. Wu argued this practice of restriction would eventually hinder future innovation.The Federal Communications Commission tried for nearly a decade to enforce net neutrality protections, but <a href="https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/net-neutrality">wasn't successful in court until 2015</a>, during the Obama administration, when ISPs were officially <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-the-fccs-net-neutrality-vote-really-means-2015-2">prevented from blocking or throttling traffic</a> to quash competing sites or services, effectively making it a public utility. This meant Comcast couldn't slow down your internet whenever you opened Netflix so that you would be incentivized to subscribe to its streaming service instead. ISPs also couldn't put content into "fast lanes" - meaning certain sites couldn't receive priority over others. And if the FCC found that it did, the ISP would face a fine. But, in 2017, shortly after President Donald Trump was elected, the FCC's Republican-led board <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fcc-votes-repeal-net-neutrality-2017-12">repealed the rules</a> put into place just two years earlier. Trump-appointed FCC Chairman Ajit Pai dropped the restrictions against ISPs blocking or throttling content, essentially handing off the issue of net neutrality to the Federal Trade Commission to enforce. However, the FTC is an enforcement agency, so unless an ISP participates in antitrust activity, it cannot take action against it on net neutrality premises. Fair-competition laws are left in place as the primary method of regulation and protection against illegal net neutrality offenses.<h2>What's next for net neutrality</h2>At first, the four biggest wireless carriers in the US said they would not discriminate against data, but then began inhibiting mobile video content <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/big-four-us-carries-are-throttling-mobile-video-streams-2019-8">even when their networks weren't overloaded</a>. The future of the net neutrality fight lies with the courts, Congress, and states, and is continuously being assessed. Most recently, <a href="https://www.vox.com/2019/4/10/18302186/net-neutrality-house-bill-senate">the Republican-led Senate indicated it would block the 2019 passing of the Save the Internet Act</a>, which sought to reinstate the net neutrality rules that existed in 2017 and enact them into federal law. Nearly two dozen state attorney generals and a handful of consumer groups <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fcc-will-publish-net-neutrality-decision-2018-2">sued the FCC in a bid to block the new rules</a> from going into effect in 2018. Washington, Oregon, and California <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fcc-net-neutrality-dead-heres-what-that-means-2018-6">have all passed their own version of net neutrality laws</a>, working within FCC state guidelines.After President-elect Joe Biden is inaugurated in January 2021, Pai will step down as FCC Chairman and the issue of net neutrality is <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ajit-pai-leaving-fcc-net-neutrality-fight-expected-to-restart-2020-11">expected to be relitigated</a>. <h2>Related coverage from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-reference" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tech Reference</a>:</h2><ul><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-boost-wifi-signal">7 ways to boost your Wi-Fi signal and improve your internet speed</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-my-ip">'What is my IP?': Here's what an IP address does, and how to find yours</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-set-up-a-vpn">How to set up a VPN, or Virtual Private Network, to use the internet with more privacy and security</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-redeem-code-on-ps4">'What is a good internet speed?': The internet speeds you should aim for, based on how you use the internet</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-isnt-my-internet-working">'Why isn't my internet working?': How to identify why you can't connect to the internet and troubleshoot accordingly</a></h3></li></ul>

What is net neutrality? Here's what you need to know about the open internet concept

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The <keyword id="203774" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="DOJ">DOJ</keyword> dropped its legal challenge to California's net-neutrality rules on Monday.</li><li>California lawmakers passed the rules in 2018 after Trump's <keyword id="160638" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="FCC">FCC</keyword> overturned Obama-era rules.</li><li>This is a reversal from the Trump administration's fight against popular net-neutrality policies.</li></ul>The <keyword id="67869" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Department-of-Justice">Department of Justice</keyword> has dropped its legal challenge to California's net-neutrality rules, the agency said in a <a href="https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20475238-us_v_california_net_neutrality_dismissal">court filing</a> on Monday.The move clears a major hurdle that had prevented the state's rules from going into effect, and represents a significant departure from the Trump administration's approach to internet policy.After the Trump-led <keyword id="151072" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Federal-Communications-Commission">Federal Communications Commission</keyword> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fcc-net-neutrality-dead-heres-what-that-means-2018-6?r=ts-sub">voted in 2017 to repeal</a> widely popular Obama-era net-neutrality protections at the federal level, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/everything-to-know-about-california-net-neutrality-bill-2018-7?r=ts-sub">California lawmakers</a> passed a law the following year that aimed to restore some of those protections within its own borders.But the Trump administration challenged California's rules, as did internet providers including <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-internet-justice/u-s-drops-challenge-to-california-state-net-neutrality-law-idUSKBN2A82D1">AT&amp;T, Verizon, Comcast, and Charter Communications</a> (their legal challenge is pending, and a hearing is scheduled for February 23).Read more: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/everything-to-know-about-california-net-neutrality-bill-2018-7?r=ts-sub">Everything you need to know about California's tough net neutrality bill</a>The Biden administration's decision to abandon the fight against net neutrality, which comes on the heels of President Joe Biden's nomination of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-appoints-ftc-fcc-acting-directors-slaughter-rosenworcel-2021-1?r=ts-sub">acting FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel</a>, signals it may take a tougher approach to companies that provide Americans with <keyword id="382594" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="internet-access">internet access</keyword>."I am pleased that the Department of Justice has withdrawn this lawsuit," Rosenworcel said in a <a href="https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-369799A1.pdf">press release</a>."When the FCC, over my objection, rolled back its net-neutrality policies, states like California sought to fill the void with their own laws. By taking this step, Washington is listening to the American people, who overwhelmingly support an open internet, and is charting a course to once again make net neutrality the law of the land," she said.<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2017/12/12/this-poll-gave-americans-a-detailed-case-for-and-against-the-fccs-net-neutrality-plan-the-reaction-among-republicans-was-striking/">Public opinion polls</a> have <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/technology/435009-4-in-5-americans-say-they-support-net-neutrality-poll">consistently shown</a> that the <a href="https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2018/04/23/new-mozilla-poll-support-for-net-neutrality-grows-as-trust-in-isps-dips/">overwhelming majority</a> of Americans - including both Republicans and Democrats - support net neutrality, a policy that prevents internet providers like AT&amp;T and Comcast from "throttling" customers' internet speeds or forcing certain websites to pay more for "fast lanes."In addition to fighting net neutrality, the Trump administration mostly deregulated the industry. Under former <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ajit-pai-leaving-fcc-net-neutrality-fight-expected-to-restart-2020-1?r=ts-sub">FCC chair Ajit Pai's leadership</a>, the agency faced criticism for <a href="https://variety.com/2020/digital/news/fcc-ajit-pai-industry-praise-critics-net-neutrality-1234843052/">being overly friendly</a> toward the companies under its purview, doing little to improve Americans' <a href="https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2021/01/3mbps-uploads-still-fast-enough-for-us-homes-ajit-pai-says-in-final-report/?utm_brand=arstechnica&amp;utm_source=twitter&amp;utm_social-type=owned&amp;utm_medium=socialedium=social">internet speeds</a> or ability to <a href="https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/04/ajit-pai-uses-bad-data-to-claim-isps-are-deploying-broadband-to-everyone/">access the internet</a> in the first place.Despite industry arguments that deregulation promotes innovation and cost savings that benefit consumers, the US recently fell out of the top 10 countries for internet speeds globally, according to a report from <a href="https://decisiondata.org/news/analysis-us-falls-out-of-top-10-average-internet-speeds/">DecisionData.org</a>, and Americans still <a href="https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2019/aug/29/elizabeth-warren/warren-says-us-broadband-lags-compared-other-natio/">pay far more</a> for that service.

California's net-neutrality rules clear major hurdle as Biden's DOJ abandons its efforts to block them

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image"><a title_source="BI Intelligence" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/555acc85eab8eab26a816de0-960/bii mobile only adults net neutrality.png"></a>BI Intelligence</div></div></div>Americans are increasingly ditching their desktops and reaching for their mobile devices to access the internet instead. This shift has ushered in the widespread growth and transition of online activities like video watching, banking, and online purchasing from desktop to mobile environments.For this reason, mobile broadband - or internet access from any mobile device - was included in the FCC's recently adopted net neutrality proposal, making it subject to many of the same constraints and regulations as the wired internet. This has added another layer to the hot-button debate on net neutrality - the concept that all data transmitted over the internet, from all sources, ranging from established digital content companies like Netflix to budding online startups to indie blogs, should be treated equally.In a <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">new report</a>, <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">BI Intelligence</a> examines how new provisions enacted by the FCC are applied to the mobile market, the impact that the application of net neutrality has on stakeholders like ISPs, consumers, and digital media companies, and what is likely to happen with the FCC's net neutrality rules in the months and years to come. <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">Access The Full Report And Our Ongoing Research By Signing Up For A Trial Membership Today &gt;&gt;</a>Here are some of the key takeaways:<ul><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">The FCC's newest set of rules on net neutrality aim to ensure fair and unfettered access to the internet by explicitly enforcing "bright-line rules,"</a> which prohibit the practices of blocking, throttling, and paid prioritization of data.</li><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">The rules, which went into effect on June 12, also reclassify mobile broadband - or internet access from any mobile device - as a telecom service</a>, and they grant the FCC permission to impose more strenuous regulations on broadband carriers. There are now more mobile-only users in the US than desktop-only users.</li><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">There are exemptions to the current net neutrality rules that allow for case-by-case rulings by the FCC</a> and keep open practices like interconnection agreements, in which digital media companies and delivery networks pay ISPs for bringing their bandwidth-intensive content to consumers.</li><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">Large telecoms like AT&amp;T and Comcast have argued that greater government regulation will force them to suspend network and infrastructure investments</a> for both wireline and wireless broadband and thereby disadvantage the average US consumer. There is no question of the need for infrastructure investment: The US leads in 4G and LTE development but is behind the curve on 5G.</li><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">Consumers and pro-net neutrality companies like Etsy and Sprint argue that enacting net neutrality in some form is important to protecting competition</a> and fostering innovation in mobile and digital content, and preserving fair access to consumers.</li><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">It's unlikely that the rules will remain in their current form.</a> Pending lawsuits and efforts by Congress to pass net neutrality measures are likely to change the FCC's net neutrality implementation, at least in part.</li></ul>In full, the report: <ul><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">Introduces the concept of net neutrality and explains the steps that led to the June 12 implementation of the FCC's Title II net neutrality rules.</a></li><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">Examines what the new rules actually mean in practice. </a></li><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">Explains the exemptions and caveats of the exhaustive list of rules and stipulations in the proposal.</a></li><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">Explores the reasoning behind the inclusion of mobile broadband in the proposal.</a></li><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">Identifies the stances of the largest stakeholders of net neutrality and discusses the early impact that net neutrality enactment has already had on some companies, and highlights possible future impacts. </a></li><li><a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">Presents the various scenarios that could unfold for teh FCC's net neutrality implementation.</a></li></ul>To access the full report from BI Intelligence, sign up for a 14-day trial here. Members also gain access to new <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">in-depth reports</a>, <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">hundreds of charts</a>, as well as <a href="https://intelligence.businessinsider.com/the-net-neutrality-report-where-we-are-now-what-happens-next-and-why-mobile-is-central-to-the-debate-2015-8?utm_source=House&amp;utm_medium=Edit&amp;utm_term=M-NetNeutrality-8-19-15&amp;utm_content=link&amp;utm_campaign=BIIMobile" onclick="this.href = this.href + '-' + window.location.search.substr(1).replace(/\&amp;\=/g, '-');">daily newsletters</a> on the digital industry. <div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image"><a title_source="BI Intelligence" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/55d4a81f371d22a10e8c1104-960/bii mobile network life cycles 2g 3g 4g 5g.png"></a>BI Intelligence</div></div></div>

What net neutrality means for mobile's biggest stakeholders

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="28808" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="ATT">AT&amp;T</keyword> customers who stream <keyword id="7849400" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="HBO-Max">HBO Max</keyword> will now have it count against their data plans.</li><li>The change comes after a federal court upheld California's net neutrality law.</li><li>The change "impacts our customers in states beyond California," AT&amp;T said.</li></ul>AT&amp;T will now start counting steaming video on HBO Max towards its customers' data allowances.The change comes after a federal court said that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/federal-judge-says-california-can-enforce-net-neutrality-law-2021-2">California can enforce its net neutrality law</a>, which prevents Internet Service Providers from blocking or slowing down traffic to particular applications or websites. California's law also bans "zero-rating" or "sponsored data" plans that allow ISPs to exempt some services from a user's data cap.AT&amp;T said in a <a href="https://www.attpublicpolicy.com/congress/impact-of-california-net-neutrality-law-on-free-data-services/">blog post on Wednesday </a>that the new measure means it can no longer provide certain services to its customers for free. That includes the HBO Max <keyword id="572624" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Streaming">streaming</keyword> service that the company developed when it merged with Timer Warner in an <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/att-acquires-time-warner-2018-6">$85 billion deal in 2018</a>. The telecom company also dismissed as "unworkable" California's net neutrality law, one of a handful of such laws that states have enacted."A state-by-state approach to 'net neutrality' is unworkable. A patchwork of state regulations, many of them overly restrictive, creates roadblocks to creative and pro-consumer solutions," AT&amp;T said in its blog post. The change will also be applied beyond California, AT&amp;T added.Prior to the California net neutrality law, companies in that state were allowed to "sponsor" or pay for the data usage of their customers who are also using AT&amp;T services. Those customers were able to stream applications without being charged from their AT&amp;T data allowance, the company said in the blog post. AT&amp;T will not offer Data Free TV for free anymore starting March 25, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/17/att-will-count-hbo-max-toward-data-caps-blames-net-neutrality-law.html">according to CNBC</a>.<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-net-neutrality">Net neutrality</a> is the idea that internet service providers should deal with data equally, free, and open regardless of platform, application, device, or user.After the Trump-led Federal Communications Commission <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fcc-net-neutrality-dead-heres-what-that-means-2018-6?r=ts-sub">voted in 2017 to repeal</a> the widely popular Obama-era net-neutrality protections at the federal level, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/everything-to-know-about-california-net-neutrality-bill-2018-7?r=ts-sub">California lawmakers</a> passed their own version of the bill. But the Trump administration challenged California's rules, as did internet providers including <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-internet-justice/u-s-drops-challenge-to-california-state-net-neutrality-law-idUSKBN2A82D1">AT&amp;T, Verizon, Comcast, and Charter Communications.</a>Last month, a federal judge upheld the state's law. The Department of Justice in February dropped its legal challenge to the California measure. <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2017/12/12/this-poll-gave-americans-a-detailed-case-for-and-against-the-fccs-net-neutrality-plan-the-reaction-among-republicans-was-striking/">Public opinion polls</a> have <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/technology/435009-4-in-5-americans-say-they-support-net-neutrality-poll">consistently shown</a> that the <a href="https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2018/04/23/new-mozilla-poll-support-for-net-neutrality-grows-as-trust-in-isps-dips/">overwhelming majority</a> of Americans - including both Republicans and Democrats - support net neutrality. Opponents, including ISPs, <keyword id="17591" type="TECHNOLOGY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Broadband">broadband</keyword> and telecommunications companies, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/fccs-net-neutrality-repeal-will-be-a-boon-to-the-large-tech-companies-2017-12">say the rule makes big tech companies</a> like Facebook and Amazon even more powerful.Last year, three senators <a href="https://www.markey.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Markey%20ATT%20HBO%20NN%2006.04.20.pdf">sent a letter</a> to AT&amp;T CEO Randall Stephenson about net neutrality concerns after the company decided to strike a deal with HBO Max, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/senators-raise-net-neutrality-concerns-att-hbo-max-sponsored-data-2020-6">Insider previously reported</a>. The senators were concerned that AT&amp;T's HBO Max plans act against the concept of free and open internet and that internet service providers shouldn't favor content " in which they have a financial interest over competitors' content," they wrote.

AT&T says its customers will no longer be able to stream HBO Max for free, citing California's net neutrality law

New Delhi, Jan 2 () Telecom regulator TRAI on Thursday started an industry-wide consultation on framework for network traffic management practices and multi-stakeholder body outlined in the net neutrality principles.
The consultation paper issued by TRAI on Thursday discusses various challenges in measurement of internet traffic and compilation of reasonable traffic management practices. 
"The objective of this consultation paper is to deliberate the issues related to traffic management practices and the Multi Stakeholder body... It discusses about establishment of a framework to formulate traffic management practices. The paper also discusses about the issues related to composition, function, Governance Structure of multi-stakeholder body," Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said.
The discussion paper is "limited" to the issues on which additional recommendation were sought by Telecom Department in its letter on July 2018, TRAI said while pointing out that the regulator has no intention to revisit its principles on Net Neutrality and broad approach recommended earlier.
TRAI said that comments on issues raised in the consultation paper should be submitted by January 30 and counter comments by February 13, 2020. 
 The net neutrality principles -- approved by the telecom department in 2018 -- prohibit service providers from discriminating against internet content and services by blocking, throttling or according preferential higher speeds.
Simply put, this means that entire internet traffic should be available to everyone on equal terms without any discrimination, and service providers cannot indulge in practices such as throttling any web traffic or providing fast lanes for specific content.
Globally, there have been widespread concerns on potential for discriminatory treatment of online traffic by the entities that control access to the internet. These concerns regarding non-discriminatory access have become the centre of a global policy debate, often referred to as the debate on 'net neutrality'.
TRAI had earlier barred platforms like Facebook's Internet.Org and Airtel Zero which allowed free access to select websites, to check 'gate-keeping' in cyber space. TRAI, thereafter, also mooted restrictions on service providers that bars them from entering into agreements which lead to discriminatory treatment of content on the Internet. Based on TRAI recommendations, Telecom Commission in 2018 approved net neutrality rules which prohibit service providers from discriminating against Internet content and services by blocking, throttling or granting them higher speed access.
Some mission critical applications or services like remote surgery and autonomous cars will however be kept out of the purview of net neutrality framework. 
While clearing the net neutrality rules, DoT had sought additional recommendations from TRAI on necessary Traffic Management Practices (TMPs) and composition, functions, role and responsibilities of the multi-stakeholder body for monitoring and enforcement. "Any traffic management practice must only be applied to handle concerned exceptional circumstances and not for any commercial considerations," TRAI has said in its consultation paper on Thursday.
It has sought stakeholder views on types of practices currently deployed by access providers to manage traffic. 
"Out of these practices, which ones can be considered as reasonable from perspective of Net Neutrality. Whether list of Traffic Management Practises (TMPs) can be prepared in advance or it would be required to update it from time to time? If later is yes, then what framework would be required to be established by Multi-Stakeholder Body to keep it up to date?," TRAI has asked.
It has also sought views on set up needed for detecting violations of Net Neutrality.
Department of Telecom (DoT) had also asked the Trai to "recommend the composition, functions, role and responsibilities of the multi-stakeholder body" that will play an advisory role to DoT regrading monitoring and enforcement of net neutrality principles. Multi-Stakeholder Body will be responsible for providing support to Telecom Department in monitoring and enforcement of net neutrality principles and submit requisite reports to the Government based on monitoring and investigations.
"What should be the composition, functions, roles and responsibilities of multi-stakeholder body considering the decision of DoT that multi-stakeholder body shall have an advisory role and formulation of TMPs and Monitoring and Enforcement rest with DoT?," TRAI said. MBI MR
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