Net Neutrality given an extra push by President Obama

The conversations surrounding net neutrality have been heating up, and have come to a head today when President Obama asks the FCC for stronger net neutrality laws. The President’s desire is for internet services to be reclassified and considered more like a public utility. "I believe the FCC should create a new set of rules protecting net neutrality and ensuring that neither the cable company nor the phone company will be able to act as a gatekeeper, restricting what you can do or see online."

My original reaction to this news was opposed to these stronger regulations. Not recognizing that the regulations put in place would actually protect me, the consumer, more. Therefore after my due diligence I am all for the proposed reclassification. I am against the idea that large corporations and companies that have a large ad spend or major control could have the potential to pay for a “faster lane” and allow their content to be more quickly and easily digested by the consumer. Last week I wrote on Native Ads, and this takes that idea to another level.  At the end of the day, there has to be a line drawn between money and paying for content and the content ingested and shown to consumers and viewers. While it would prove highly profitable for internet providers if they could make deals trading special access for content, I believe it goes against the rights of all businesses and the individual, and would turn into the internet being run by corporations even more so, and less filled with free speech and consumer choice.