What Happened to Net Neutrality?

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What about the idea that the Internet would become a level playing field, an outlet for democracy and independent voices, rather than a corporate-dominated, winner-take-all wasteland like commercial radio? Well, it’s taken one step forward and two steps back, or perhaps vice versa — the new proposal is very hard to figure out.

Here’s what the Future of Music Coalition — a group whose policies I often, not always, concur with, posted:

This week, news broke that theFederal Communications Commission (FCC) is working ona new proposal for net neutrality that attempts to combine a couple different approaches. While we appreciate the effort, net neutrality advocates care less about how slick the rules are, and more about whether they’ll stand up in court.

Because last time they didn’t.

The vast majority of Americans want an Internet that works for everyone, and not just the biggest companies. And millions of us are on record supporting the reclassification of broadband service under Title II of the Telecommunications Act. Title II makes use of a longstanding principle in communications policy known as “common carriage.” This is not some radical idea. It’s been around since choo-choo trains and it’s the reason why when you pick up the phone to call your bandmate, you don’t have to wait for the rich people to finish talking first.

…We don’t want clever net neutrality. We want real net neutrality.

One of my favorite scribes on this issue, Robert Levine of Free Ride, tweeted: “I’m so glad the FCC is choosing a net neutrality policy that will continue to confuse the living hell out of everyone . . .”

Too many assignments and an upcoming trip keep me from weighing in further today. But I’ll try to keep tracking the issue as it develops.