Today is the day we have the hearing for Net Neutrality. We don’t like to get very political here on TeamApple News, but this is one of those cases where if we don’t speak up, we will lose something that is so valuable to society.
Bills like this could impact everything we do. If you don’t understand it, think of the way how cable and satellite companies work. They usually offer you some sort of package that gives you a variety of channels for a certain price. When that happens though, you usually end up wishing that you could get more channels.
For example, you could be paying $75 a month for a cable package that has ESPN, ESPN 2, FS1, and FSN, but you will not get access to NBC Sports Network, NFL Network, and FS2 and you want those channels. In order to get those channels, you’ll have to pay (say) $25 more per month to get them.
This is how our internet could be, whereas right now, we have an open internet that allows consumers and users to search what they want to search with no restrictions. There is not one place that you cannot go and no place where internet companies are allowed to intentionally slow down your speed or streaming services.
How is this going to impact you? Imagine if Netflix contacted your local internet provider, paid a sum of money, and told the provider to slow down the video quality of services like Hulu and Prime Video.
This will also impact the new live TV streaming services like Sling TV, Hulu with Live TV, and DirecTV Now since a lot of internet providers are also cable/satellite providers. If the provider saw that you are streaming TV on one of those services, they could shut it off, fine you, or completely block you from using it. And if there is anything we have learned within the past couple of years, it’s that people are really fond of the much cheaper live TV streaming services.
The vote to end Net Neutrality will come tomorrow by the FCC and at the moment, there is no way to watch or stream the hearing, but we will update this post when we find out. We are hoping for the best, but at the moment, things are not looking good. Make sure to keep your eye on Twitter and other social media tomorrow to find out the latest updates on what is happening.
UPDATE: According to Recode, the FCC’s official website will be hosting a livestream of the hearing. It begins at 10:30 AM ET/7:30 AM PT. Click here to the FCC’s livestream of this event.