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ISPs will just offer slower plans as default and promotions with faster connections for people that consent with data harvesting and monetization. As it's a pr

ISPs will just offer slower plans as default and promotions with faster connections for people that consent with data harvesting and monetization. As it's a promotion, regulators can't forbidden promotions. And as ISPs are an oligopoly at best, it will be easy to force most people to consent. Regulators must forbidden data harvesting and selling. But it will not happen because data is the new gold.

awakeasleep 7y ago
The bill forbids data sharing consent as precondition to service
- user5184 7y ago
  It's not precondition to service. People will be able to get the service but only lower speeds. Faster connections only opting for the "promotion"
  - salawat 7y ago
    The "faster connections" would be seen as "fast lanes". If we could push through net neutrality, this wouldn't be an issue.
tomd3v 7y ago
> Maine’s new law does not allow an ISP to offer a discounted rate to customers who agree to share or sell their data.
- user5184 7y ago
  ISP will argue it is not a discount it's a promotion. They are two different things under the law
  - Frondo 7y ago
    So let them argue and let this go to court and be clarified there. Rather than cynically dismiss this, imagine a less shitty world for a moment and imagine how we get there.
- treis 7y ago
  I don't get why ISPs are the only ones singled out for this. More or less everything on the internet is subsidized by data harvesting. What's so special about ISPs that it should be different?
  - egypturnash 7y ago
    Gotta start somewhere, if they were going after everyone then everyone would be throwing money at trying to stop it. Also apparently this new law is modeled on a federal law against ISPs harvesting data that the Trump administration struck down. So this is maybe not so much a bold step forwards against data harvesting as a refusal to be dragged backwards.
    - treis 7y ago
      >Gotta start somewhere, Why start with the only sector that isn't routinely harvesting and selling user data?
      - iamnothere 7y ago
        > Why start with the only sector that isn't routinely harvesting and selling user data? If they aren't doing anything wrong with the data, then what's the issue? They won't have to change any business practices.
      - egypturnash 7y ago
        Maybe to create legal precedent to go after the sectors that do?
  - forgottenpass 7y ago
    Because they've got to start somewhere? Government is a lot of incremental progress, not a big bang from zero to perfection. Attempts to bundle too much scope into one unit of work is a frequent compliant towards government.
  - tzs 7y ago
    To the extent that we are going to consider data harvesting an inherently harmful business model that needs to be regulated, there is no reason to single out ISPs. As a practical matter, it might make a lot of sense to start with ISPs, though, because you get more bang for the buck there if you don't think you would be able to pass some kind of all encompassing data harvesting regulation. If we aren't going to consider data harvesting to be an inherently harmful business model, it still makes some sense to regulate it in the case of ISPs because ISPs are internet infrastructure. If ISPs are data harvesting, it means that you cannot use the internet without being subjected to data harvesting. Furthermore, your ISP has a lot more information on you than most sites you visit will have. If ISPs cannot data harvest, than at least I've got a chance to avoid it on the net. Sure, it may be hard, and I may have to avoid the most popular services like Twitter, Google, Facebook, and the like, but at least it is theoretically possible.

awakeasleep 7y ago

The bill forbids data sharing consent as precondition to service

user5184 7y ago
It's not precondition to service. People will be able to get the service but only lower speeds. Faster connections only opting for the "promotion"
- salawat 7y ago
  The "faster connections" would be seen as "fast lanes". If we could push through net neutrality, this wouldn't be an issue.

tomd3v 7y ago

> Maine’s new law does not allow an ISP to offer a discounted rate to customers who agree to share or sell their data.

user5184 7y ago
ISP will argue it is not a discount it's a promotion. They are two different things under the law
- Frondo 7y ago
  So let them argue and let this go to court and be clarified there. Rather than cynically dismiss this, imagine a less shitty world for a moment and imagine how we get there.
treis 7y ago
I don't get why ISPs are the only ones singled out for this. More or less everything on the internet is subsidized by data harvesting. What's so special about ISPs that it should be different?
- egypturnash 7y ago
  Gotta start somewhere, if they were going after everyone then everyone would be throwing money at trying to stop it. Also apparently this new law is modeled on a federal law against ISPs harvesting data that the Trump administration struck down. So this is maybe not so much a bold step forwards against data harvesting as a refusal to be dragged backwards.
  - treis 7y ago
    >Gotta start somewhere, Why start with the only sector that isn't routinely harvesting and selling user data?
    - iamnothere 7y ago
      > Why start with the only sector that isn't routinely harvesting and selling user data? If they aren't doing anything wrong with the data, then what's the issue? They won't have to change any business practices.
    - egypturnash 7y ago
      Maybe to create legal precedent to go after the sectors that do?
- forgottenpass 7y ago
  Because they've got to start somewhere? Government is a lot of incremental progress, not a big bang from zero to perfection. Attempts to bundle too much scope into one unit of work is a frequent compliant towards government.
- tzs 7y ago
  To the extent that we are going to consider data harvesting an inherently harmful business model that needs to be regulated, there is no reason to single out ISPs. As a practical matter, it might make a lot of sense to start with ISPs, though, because you get more bang for the buck there if you don't think you would be able to pass some kind of all encompassing data harvesting regulation. If we aren't going to consider data harvesting to be an inherently harmful business model, it still makes some sense to regulate it in the case of ISPs because ISPs are internet infrastructure. If ISPs are data harvesting, it means that you cannot use the internet without being subjected to data harvesting. Furthermore, your ISP has a lot more information on you than most sites you visit will have. If ISPs cannot data harvest, than at least I've got a chance to avoid it on the net. Sure, it may be hard, and I may have to avoid the most popular services like Twitter, Google, Facebook, and the like, but at least it is theoretically possible.