CSCI 102T

The Socio-Techno Web

Home | Schedule | Labs | CS@Williams

Week 10: Net Neutrality

Net neutrality is a timely topic since, it seems, the FCC will soon vote on the issue. In this assignment we will sift through competing narratives in an attempt understand what is actually at stake.

Goals

In this assignment, we will read arguments on both sides of the net neutrality debate. At the end we should be able to actively participate in the ongoing (jargon-laden) conversation. In particular, we should understand:

• network congestion
• bandwidth throttling
• quality of service
• traffic shaping
• paid prioritization
• source/service blocking
• preferential pricing/access
• "last mile" service provider
• Title I information service
• common carrier and Title II classification

Much of the discussion in the media is US-specific. We should also think about the meaning of net neutrality in other contexts (e.g., human rights, censorship).

In addition to building familiarity with the topic and the language used in the debate, we will participate in the debate. We will write to our representatives and/or submit a comment on the FCC website.

Readings

Required Readings:

• "Neutral" (pre 2015 FCC ruling) summmary of the issues: Net Neutrality: Background and Issues (2008)
• "Against" (Economic analysis) Wither U.S. Net Neutrality Regulation? (2017)
• "Pro" (Opinion piece) Net Neutrality Reloaded (2017)

Optional Readings/Media:

• Original paper that coined the term "net neutrality" (2004)
• March 12, 2015 FCC report that reclassfied broadband as a common carrier.
• FCC plans to vote to overturn U.S. net neutrality rules in December: sources (2017)
• Before Net Neutrality: The Surprising 1940s Battle for Radio Freedom (2015)
• Net Neutrality: A Guide to (and History of) a Contested Idea (2014)
• battleforthenet.com (with videos and other readings, very pro-net neutrality)
• Last Week Tonight:
  
  
  

Assignment

• Writing Prompt (main writer): According to Vint Cerf, one of the "fathers of the Internet",

  The conundrum in the net neutrality debate is to fashion incentives for access providers to continue to invest in and upgrade service capacity while preserving user choice and provide incentives for new applications to be brought to the Internet and made accessible to all access subscribers without inhibiting new entrants into the marketplace of Internet services by erecting barriers to their entry.

  Does the FCC's 2015 ruling to reclassify broadband as a common carrier under Title II of the Communications act of 1934 "solve" this conundrum? Do you support the FCC's 2015 decision? Is there a better option? For this (shorter) writing, I would like you to
  • Summarize the main issues of "net neutrality" (provide some clarity to this over-loaded term)
  • Summarize the implications of the 2015 FCC ruling (for consumers and for ISPs)
  • Explain why you think the FCC should keep the current classification or why you think they should reclassify broadband
  I can imagine creating an .html file with three sections: "What is Net Neutrality?", "The 2015 FCC Reclassification of Broadband", and "Revisiting the FCC's Decision". In an ideal world, we would be able to show the first two sections to our families at Thanksgiving, and we would then be able to have a healthy debate. In other words, try to make your summaries clear and accessible, and separate the facts from your editorializing. This separation will help you with...


• Write/call congress (both main writer and main responder): Write a letter to your representatives (or to the MA representatives) in Congress. In this letter, make an argument as to why they should vote for or vote against the reclassification of broadband. Justify your position. You do not have to send this letter, but I hope that we will after our discussions.

Explaining net neutrality (not submitted): The BITS authors often used analogies to explain technical concepts. Can you think of any good analogies for net neutrality?