Net neutrality is the idea that all data should be treated the same regardless of where the information comes from. To put this simply Google does not receive any priority over this blog just because it is Google and they have more money than many small countries.
To my perspective this is a no-brainer, however to hear it from ISPs and the backbones that provide them QoS is or Quality of Service is being sacrificed to ensure this occurs. The reasoning behind it is pretty abstract but basically people are streaming more videos and music all this streaming is coming at a price; bandwidth. To ensure that we still have a usable internet ISPs are finding it necessary to heap lots of money into QoS architecture including engineers and routers, these routers determine which packets get higher priority based on what the information being transmitted.
Hold on did I not open by saying all data is treated the same?
No, all sites are treated the same but data receives priority based on what it is. If you are looking at this page it does not matter if you get the packets all in continuous stream or as they are available the page will load but you can still view the content. However if you were watching a video you may experience lag or gaps in reception which causes the video to pause or stutter, so video receives priority over text data. Currently this solution works great I can read my blogs and check houses out on Viewr however as more people get into the video business bandwidth rapidly becomes an issue.
So what does this have to do with you?
That’s the sticky bit, ISPs love that people are spending more time online but they hate the fact they have to upgrade their networks for us to enjoy all the InmanTV videocasts. What they would like to do is pass this cost directly to you the consumer and as REALTORS likely website owner operators. From the ISP’s point of view bandwidth and QoS requirements are placing a heavy burden on their networks and maintaining it will ultimately cost them (ISPs) more money.
Their solution; tiered internet plans, in other words to get data faster you pay extra. Well on the face of it sounds reasonable you pay for broadband over dialup, T1s over cable etc. If you examine it though you will find that you are ending up paying an additional tax just to ensure that you maintain your current access rates.
To my perspective this is like paying twice for the same service. For example you pay for you home connection and I pay for my website hosting costs. We should be able to exchange information freely and under net neutrality it does not matter if I am hosting video or text my data gets the same treatment. Without net neutrality this may be true if you were just reading my blog but if I wanted to share a video in tiered service scheme I will likely have to pay an additional fee to distribute the video and you an additional fee to access it.
The bottom line is this…
If you have a website and wish to provide your clients with a method of accessing data online be it searching for homes or viewing video tours then you have a vested interest in the net staying neutral. If net neutrality goes away there will be higher cost to doing business online especially if you are looking to provide video through your site. This could impact the way you leverage emerging technologies in your business or even make it cost prohibitive for smaller companies to maintain an online presence.
The part that should not be overlooked is that many of the ISPs built their networks using public funds either in the form of tax breaks or grants the understanding being that this money would be used to upgrade the networks when the time comes. However the time has come and they are coming to us for the money. I don’t have any call to action or anything like that but if Net Neutrality comes up for a vote or discussion and you have the opportunity raise some of these concerns. Also next time you have an opportunity to make a contribution to the REALTOR Action Fund do so. Both NAR and your State associations work hard to make sure that your interests as business owners are represented in situations such as this.
I know this is a confusing subject so I will let one of the lawmakers explain it
Of course we should also give “PC” an opportunity to explain Net Neutrality
All humor aside I hope you after reading this you have a better understanding of what Net Neutrality is and how suspending Net Neutrality could affect you both as a consumer and website owner.
Mark Flavin
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