Understanding Net Neutrality

[Commentary] Network neutrality is usually referred to as the equal treatment of data, regardless of the type of content, provider or consumer. However, in reality the issue is much more complex. Firstly, there is no universal definition of ‘net neutrality’ which means the subject is often misunderstood by the general public, and there is a lot of misinformation in mainstream media. So saying that you are in favour of, or against net neutrality is not that simple. To begin to understand the issue, it is useful to ask yourself the following questions: does your country have Internet regulation? What are the consequences of this regulation on the telecommunications market? How does that affect you as an end user?

The debate about net neutrality is about more than just the right to access and impart information, it’s also about how telecommunication markets works. It’s about understanding the technical issues, the impact on the interests of various stakeholders and the consequences of regulation. The capacity of telecommunication networks is limited and demand for data/bandwidth has surged in recent years, largely due to an increase in video streaming and on-demand entertainment services. Traffic management is typically employed to ensure that a basic quality of service is always available, meaning pure net neutrality is rare. So the question is not if we should or shouldn’t allow any control of data traffic, but to establish the extent of this management and who is involved in making this decision -- government, private sector and/or civil society.

[Maria Fernanda Aguila-Marin Moreno is currently studying for her Masters in International Security at the Institut d’Etudes Politiques De Paris (Sciences Po Paris)]