WASHINGTON—When it comes to the World Wide Web in Western Mass., the recent Federal Court decision to uphold net neutrality could mean that there is more than just a so-called “open internet.”
Last week, the DC Circuit of Appeals sided with the FCC over several telecommunications companies and voted 2-1 in favor of maintaining net neutrality. Net neutrality is the idea that the Internet should be provided at the same bandwidth across any given provider and that those providers cannot charge more for higher speeds or premium service.
“In some respects the argument can be made in this day and age the necessity for the internet has grown so much that it has become a lifeline,” Aaron Bean, project manager for Whip City Fiber, the fiber-optic Internet service from Westfield Gas and Electric, said.
“It’s getting to the point where—I think I read in an article—the number one amenity that is being asked for in rental properties is the Internet,” Bean said.
The decision may not change anything for consumers immediately, but going forward the Internet’s value to them could change, going from a luxury in the home to a utility, similar to heat, electricity and water. This means that Internet as a “lifeline” could become very true for residents across the state and country.
“By having net neutrality everyone has an open playing field,” Bean said.
This could be very important going forward for Western Mass. communities. While there are some “Fiber Optic to the Home” (FTTH) Internet providers through municipalities such as Whip City Fiber in Westfield and LeverettNet in Leverett, some rural areas have to rely on occasional slow speeds, or worse, no Internet at all. Now, these rural municipalities will be able to provide similar services at a potentially lower cost, thus increasing the quality of Internet in those areas.
Bean also said that the confirmation of net neutrality means that those who no longer want to rely on cable for their information or entertainment also have a greater potential to do so. This is because now companies cannot dictate what information goes and at what speed.
This can also benefit the independent and small business web developers out there, whose competition may have larger wallets to spend for faster and prioritized services, according to Bean.
“If you want to build your own server and create your own widget in your basement, you have as much priority as Netflix,” he said.
And for Bean and Whip City Fiber, this is how he thinks the Internet should be, especially at a municipal level.
“For us, as a local municipal utility we don’t care what the electricity is used for, we just transport the energy,” Bean said. “Same for your internet—we don’t care if you stream live video or look up woods sites or Wikipedia. We just want to get it for you as quickly as we can.”
