In general, Internet service providers have a lot of flexibility in the services that they offer and the prices they charge for the services. What is becoming of a concern to them is the possibility of net neutrality coming into effect.
This would be where the government in various countries would set mandates where these ISP providers have to treat all of the data that they handle for the Internet on the same level. There would be no room for any type of discrimination, and they would not to be able to set prices based on a specific user or the type of content or the purpose of the website, for example.
It is important to realize that the ISP providers have a lot of power when it comes to the Internet in relation to the services that they provide. For example, one of these providers can choose to slow down uploads or downloads which can dramatically affect a business. Another situation that can occur is that of blocking, where an ISP provider can block users from accessing certain sites. As a result of this and the complaints that have been risen because of it, many governments are now taking a look at setting rules for neutrality.
This is causing quite a stir within the Internet communities.Some large conglomerates such as Facebook and Google along with Netflix are joining together to deliver messages pertaining to the government’s potential involvement regarding this.
There are mixed feelings when it comes to the FCC rules that regulate this industry where some feel that the regulations are good and others feel they’re too intrusive. With the new president coming into power in the US there is a strong possibility that the FCC rules will be rolled back.
