December 28, 2017. Recently, the FCC repealed net neutrality regulations, and now there is no legal basis to stop ISPs from segregating the Internet. Among other things, they can charge websites and services for access toa “fast lane” of the Internet and slow down competitors’ content. Even though “rolling back the rollback” is still possible through the passage of a law in Congress or through federal lawsuits, NordVPN suggests taking a glimpse into the possible ‘Black Mirror-ish’ future of the US without the net neutrality.
NordVPN has a list of the potential consequences of the net neutrality revocation. Here it is:
1. Effect on education. Across the country, students and schools rely on fast, open Internet to communicate, research, study, collaborate and submit papers. Many use videoconferencing or study remotely. Due to the revocation of net neutrality, the quality if the Internet might suffer, especially in smaller towns and rural areas, which would affect the ability of students to access learning materials, libraries and other resources. The quality of study-related websites might suffer as commercial sites are given preference by ISPs.
2. Mobile zero-rating plans. Mobile carriers will be able to exclude some apps or services from their monthly data caps. This means that customers will have to access some of the apps at no extra charge even if they've surpassed their data limit, while other apps will not be included in the plan.
3. Entrepreneurs and startups. The American economy has thrived for decades because small business is given a lot of opportunities to develop. Because of net neutrality revocation, new unknown sites might be moved directly to the slow lane or they will be charged to reach Internet users. Many new startups will not be able to avoid these costs, which will damage online innovation and the whole idea of American entrepreneurship.
4. Artists. Those who try to sell their original content online - such as songs or music - might be the ones who also get pushed to slow lanes of traffic. The net neutrality revocation might directly stifle creativity and art.
“We believe that each Internet user, whether they are an entrepreneur or a student, have the right to access all the material they need online and to launch their business without any Internet restrictions,” said Marty P. Kamden, CMO of NordVPN. “When this equality is taken away, the Internet is not free anymore. Sure, consequences of the repeal of net neutrality will not be felt immediately. ISPs will most likely try to hide their activity when it comes to traffic prioritization. Nevertheless, if it comes to that, we will do everything in our power in order for NordVPN to provide equal and unrestricted Internet access to everyone."
Can a VPN help?
When a user connects to VPN, their Internet traffic gets routed through an alternative tunnel, so their ISP is unable to determine which websites the person is trying to access - and therefore, can't "shape" one's speed based on the site or content one is trying to access.
VPNs also encrypt all traffic between a user’s computer and a VPN server, providing privacy and security when browsing the Internet. The only information visible to an ISP is that a user is connected to a VPN server and nothing else.
“When governments restrict certain freedoms, the technology that helps bypass these restrictions can be the answer,” said Marty P. Kamden. “We are proud to be able to guarantee Internet freedom and our own version of net neutrality through VPN."
About NordVPN
NordVPN is the world’s most advanced VPN service provider that is more security oriented than most VPN services. It offers double VPN encryption, anti DDoS & Onion Over VPN services. It features easy-to-use Mac, Android and iOS Apps that provide a unique algorithm, allowing to automatically connect to the fastest server. The product is very user friendly, offers one of the best prices on the market, has over 2,000 servers worldwide and is P2P friendly. One of the key features of NordVPN is zero log policy. www.nordvpn.com
