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In This Booklet The EDRi papers The EDRi papers NET NEUTRALNET ITY 2.0 NEUTRALITY 2.0 ACCESS DENIED: Net neutrality legislation has not been properly implemented in your country. EUROPEAN DIGITAL RIGHTS What is Net Neutrality? 10 Reasons for Net Neutrality Myths & Truths PAGE 04 PAGE 10 PAGE 13 Net Neutrality means that every point on the network can connect to any other point on the network, without discrimination on the basis of origin, destination or type of data. This principle is the central reason for the success of the internet. Net Neutrality is crucial for innovation, competition and for the free flow of information. Most importantly, Net Neutrality gives the internet its ability to generate new means of exercising civil rights such as the freedom of expression and the right to receive and impart information. In this booklet, we will explain the principle of Net Neutrality, why it is important, why certain internet access providers believe that they have an interest in violating it, and we will address common misconceptions. “Allowing broadband carriers to control what people see and do online would fundamentally undermine the principles that have made the internet such a success.” - Vint Cerf, founding father of the internet With financial support from CONTENTS PAGE 01 WHAT IS NET NEUTRALITY? FREEDOM OF COMMUNICATION IN THE DIGITAL ERA PAGE 05 WHY IS NET NEUTRALITY VIOLATED? THE THREE MAIN REASONS PAGE 07 10 REASONS FOR NET NEUTRALITY PAGE 10 MYTHS & TRUTHS PAGE 13 THE SITUATION IN THE EUROPEAN UNION WAITING FOR NET NEUTRALITY PAGE 15 THE NETHERLANDS A CASE STUDY PAGE 17 10 WAYS TO SAFEGUARD NET NEUTRALITY PAGE 19 GLOSSARY Original booklet written by: The EDRi (European Digital Rights) network European Digital Rights Kirsten Fiedler and Joe McNamee, ex-colleagues is a dynamic collective of 44+ NGOs, 12 Rue Belliard experts, advocates and academics working 1040 Brussels at EDRi. to defend and advance digital rights across [email protected] With contributions by EDRi members. Europe. Edited and updated by: Jan Penfrat, Senior Policy Advisor Rafael Javier Hernández, Communications Intern Gail Rego, Senior Communications and Media Manager Design by: CtrlSPATIE WHAT IS NET NEUTRALITY? fig 1: Open neutral access model WHAT IS NET NEUTRALITY? The internet is an interconnected different envelopes.01 The post and decentralised network office can send the pages by that links devices around different routes and, when they the globe. We can access are received, the envelopes can the internet via connections be removed and the pages put provided by our telecom (or back together in the right order. internet access) providers. When we connect to the internet, These access providers transmit each one of us becomes an the information that we send endpoint in this global network over the internet in the form of with the freedom to connect to so-called data “packets”. The any other endpoint, whether this way in which data is sent and is another person’s computer received on the internet can (“peer-to peer”), a website, an be compared to sending the application, an email system, pages of a book by post in lots of a video stream and so on. The 1 Net Neutrality WHAT IS NET NEUTRALITY? success of the internet is based on Net Neutrality is most commonly two simple but crucial components defined as the principle that of its architecture: internet users can connect to any other point in the network, and that 1. Every connected device can they can create, access and use any connect to every other connected content, service and application device and they choose without discrimination. Everybody in whatever role, and 2. All services use the “internet all organisations of whatever Protocol,” which is sufficiently size and style, can participate flexible and simple to carry all globally. Everybody can access types of content (video, e-mail, services and to offer services. messaging etc). Telecom companies enable us to 01 EDRi booklet: How the internet works http://www.edri.org/files/2012EDRiPapers/ how_the_internet_works.pdf Net Neutrality 2 fig 2: Non-neutral access model communicate, browse the web, or Why would your access provider transfer files over the internet to do such a thing? There are many make our own websites available reasons: for example, your access globally and to use services such provider might have signed an as e-mail, social media or internet exclusive agreement with Video telephony. When you want to Service B. Or the provider might watch a video online, for instance offer their own video services and you connect to the internet, open therefore want to encourage you your browser and navigate to the to use these instead of the service video service of your choice. This that you initially preferred. is possible because your access provider does not seek to restrict Such discriminatory measures your options. are often called “traffic management”. These are just Without Net Neutrality, however, two of the many reasons why you might find that your connection telecom providers might violate to Video Service A is being slowed Net Neutrality. We will explain down by your access provider in the most common reasons for a way that makes it impossible violations of Net Neutrality in the for you to watch the video. At the following chapter. same time, you would still be able to connect rapidly to competing Video Service B and maybe watch exactly the same content. 3 Net Neutrality “I don’t believe that restricting consumers’ choice can ever be an appealing driver of more growth. I certainly don’t believe that restricting access to the internet will attract many more innovative European internet companies. And I don’t believe that restricted access to the internet is the right answer to a faster deployment of Next Generation Access Networks.” - Former European Commission Vice-President, Viviane Reding “When I invented the web, I didn’t have to ask anyone for permission [...]. To reach its full potential, the internet must remain a permissionless space for creativity, innovation and free expression. Now imagine what would happen if internet service providers— usually a handful of big cable companies that control the connectivity market—were allowed to violate Net Neutrality. Their gatekeeping powers could be used to require businesses and individuals to pay a premium to ensure their content is delivered on equal terms— or even at all. This would create barriers that disadvantage small businesses and startups across all sectors that rely on the internet in any way.” - Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web Net Neutrality 4 WHY IS NET NEUTRALITY VIOLATED? THE THREE MAIN REASONS There are many reasons why services” (a.k.a. zero-rating) internet access providers do not Most of Europe’s internet access respect Net Neutrality. Here are providers now have special price the there most common reasons: plans for their customers that will not charge them for certain sites 1. Access providers violate Net and apps. This concept is known Neutrality to maximise profits as “zero-rating”. This means that users are not charged for some Some internet access providers data (i.e. it does not count against demand the right to block or slow their data cap) when using data down internet traffic for their own for a particular service. For commercial benefits. Internet example, the Belgian provider access providers are not only in Proximus allows customers to control of internet connections, surf without any charges when they are also moving towards using a number of specific providing content, services applications such as Pokémon and applications. They are Go, Spotify, Youtube or Deezer. increasingly looking for the power Although at first sight it may look to become the “gatekeepers” as though you get something of the internet. For example, for free, the reality is that your the Dutch telecoms access freedom of choice is restricted. provider KPN tried to make their customers use KPN’s own Zero-rating actually allows text messaging service instead internet access providers to of web-based chat services by influence the choice of their blocking these free services. customers regarding what Another notable example of applications and services they discrimination is T-Mobile’s can and cannot use. Instead of blocking of internet telephony simply selling internet access, services (Voice over IP, or VoIP providers increasingly want to in short), such as those provided sell customers selected online by Skype, in order to give priority content, applications and services to their own service and those of provided either by them or their their business partners. partners. Every competitor to a zero-rated service has a disadvantage, because users 2. Access providers violate Net have to pay extra to be able to Neutrality to offer you “free use their service. Zero-rating only helps big companies to 5 Net Neutrality WHY IS NET NEUTRALITY VIOLATED? cement their market power and kill off their competition. Without Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) zero-rating, your internet access provider could be offering you Information that we send and more data volume that you could receive through the internet freely decide how to use. travels in so-called “packets”, with “envelopes” indicating sender and receiver. Unlike 3. Access providers violate Net normal network equipment, Neutrality to comply with the law DPI looks not just at the Governments are increasingly envelopes but verifies asking access providers to the packet contents. DPI restrict certain types of traffic, can be used to disrupt to filter and to monitor the or block certain packets internet in order to enforce the based on what they contain. law. A decade ago, there were Sometimes this is done for only four countries filtering and innocuous reasons such as censoring the internet worldwide fighting spam or computer – today, there are over forty.
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