Net Neutrality Protest planned tomorrow at Google HQ

The “Google: Don’t Be Evil” rally is set for Friday Aug 13th at noon

Despite a recent press event and a long blog post aimed at explaining that Google is still pro Net-Neutrality, Google did not convince. A number of folks aren’t buying it and believe that Google is turning its back on net neutrality and “not neutrality” has become the word play du jour. Those who are angry towards Google’s joint proposal with Verizon point out that Google basically is “OK” with the idea that wireless network won’t have to abide by the same standards of net neutrality than the landlines.

“Why? First, the wireless market is more competitive than the wireline market, given that consumers typically have more than just two providers to choose from. Second, because wireless networks employ airwaves, rather than wires, and share constrained capacity among many users, these carriers need to manage their networks more actively”, Google says. Of course, AT&T Agrees.

But plenty of users don’t buy this argument, “because a pipe is a pipe” – wireless or not, they think, and the constrained capacity is exactly the argument that land-based internet providers use anyway. So, Free Press and MoveOn.org are staging a protest in Google’s Mountain View HQ tomorrow. The protestors stance: “This is about preserving openness so the next entrepreneur with a good idea can have the same chance to become the next Google or the next Yahoo or the next Facebook” – Derek Turner/Free Press. If you’re not familiar with  net neutrality, check our previous post on this topic.

Hubert Nguyen
Categories: Computers, Top Stories