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I wish he had explored this concept more: > The concept of Net Neutrality is bound in the idea that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are common carriers like
by pySSK 9y ago
I wish he had explored this concept more:
> The concept of Net Neutrality is bound in the idea that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are common carriers like the phone company. Phone companies like to claim they have no knowledge of — and therefore no responsibility for — the words that are carried over their phone lines. They serve Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the Russian Embassy alike — just as long as both pay their phone bills. Tony Soprano and Tony Stark are the same in phone company eyes. And this is true of the Internet, too, at least for the next month or so, because the FCC under President Obama declared Internet Service to be a common carrier. That’s about to change, and with it the requirement that all Internet bits be treated equally. People who are willing to pay more will soon get measurably quicker Internet service. And big bandwidth users like Amazon and Netflix will have to pay more to avoid having their signals slowed down.
If the ISPs suddenly become not common carriers, do they then become responsible for all the content? If that is the case, then we can make non-net neutrality really expensive for them.
- lowbloodsugar 9y agoThat was my thought. Are they losing the protection that common carriers get, or are they getting all the protection without any of the obligations?
- mundo 9y ago> If the ISPs suddenly become not common carriers, do they then become responsible for all the content? No, "common carrier" is an overloaded concept that implies some responsibility for the thing being carried in other contexts (e.g. maritime shipping) but does not imply what you're suggesting in this one. Remember, US ISPs were not classified as common carriers until mid-2015.
- amaranth 9y agoDSL started life considered a common carrier, it wasn't until 2005 it was reclassified, to match a previous decision that cable internet wasn't a common carrier.
- amaranth 9y agoI imagine the main potential source of expense would be covered by them still being considered DMCA safe harbors. So long as they're still considered a "mere conduit" the most you can compel them to do is stop providing service to an infringer (see three strikes systems some ISPs use today).