Editorial: The Truth About Net Neutrality

On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted along partisan lines to repeal a 2015 ruling that declared the Internet to be a utility. This is largely thanks to the anti-regulatory stances of President Donald Trump and FCC President Ajit Pai.

Contrary to the flurry of fake news that has been pushed by the media and the tech blogs, the repeal of the so-called "net neutrality" rule is a good thing for consumers.

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai

Essentially, four things will be accomplished.

• First, Internet providers can offer consumers with varying levels of Internet speed. This hardly means that they will jack up speed for one site and slow it down for another, an alarmist scenario that has been presented by the media to far too many innocent Americans. Such behavior would go against big providers' "corporate citizen" ethos and cost them millions of customers. Instead, they will utilize this ruling to give consumers more choices.

• Secondly, Internet providers can innovate. In the past two years, the number of high-speed networks has declined by 5.6%. This is a disservice to consumers who seek speedy Internet for themselves, their families, or these businesses. Since the free market is being brought back into play, there will be more opportunities for companies to experiment. Even better, individuals will be better enabled with the ability to create new companies that can challenge the big providers.

• Thirdly, Internet providers can offer less comprehensive, cheaper access. Consumers will be able to buy plans that are within their price range and offer the level of quality that they seek. They won't be forced to eat up high-speed plans that they cannot afford.

• Fourthly, the government will be left with fewer methods for digital abuse. There will be no federal targeting of conservative (or liberal) groups, as Donald Trump warned about over two years ago, without government involvement in the Internet.

In effect, Thursday's ruling will not lead to an Internet Armageddon (contrary to the fake news that has been spread). Providers will still have to disclose an array of details concerning the packages that they offer. For example, if a consumer doesn't like a plan due to a provision that would speed up Hulu and slow down Netflix, they can reject it and pick another one. It is as simple as that in a free market system.

Two, there won't be a big change in the service offered by the whopping majority of the providers. Most of them vowed to maintain their pre-repeal service regardless of the vote.

If anything, after Thursday, consumers should expect a more open Internet where government intervention is at a minimum. As it always occurs when the market is fully free, prices will go down, quality of service will rise, and the consumer will have more options. An Arizona columnist, Jon Gabriel, summed it up perfectly in an editorial published by USA Today:

Before the FCC’s heavy-handed intervention, we saw the creation of Amazon, Google and Twitter. If Washington removes these unnecessary regulations as expected, we’ll see the Internet continue to blossom.

Thank you, FCC Chairman Pai, for your push for free market reforms. Despite a chorus that attempted to rue the day, your common sense prevailed.