Demystifying Google and Verizon’s Proposed Policy for the Open Internet

Google and Verizon have released a joint public policy proposal for the open Internet outlining how broadband providers can control how their users receive content.

The proposal, which was announced earlier today by the companies’ CEOs in a conference call, is meant as a legal framework. It intends to please consumers who want to choose what they access on the Internet and how, but is still a compromise, and thus the most fundamentalist net neutrality advocates might still have some battles on their hands.

The proposal we’re seeing is starkly different from what was described in The New York Times article from last week that accused Google and Verizon of conspiring to upend the principles of net neutrality. We didn’t believe it even then, and Google CEO Eric Schmidt said in the conference call that “almost all” of what the NYT reported was “completely wrong.” In particular, he stressed that this is not a business deal at all between Verizon and Google, but simply a joint policy statement.

What’s in the Proposal?

The policy suggests that “wireline broadband” services like Verizon’s FiOS cannot prevent users from “sending and receiving lawful content of their choice,” “running lawful applications and using lawful services of their choice,” or “connecting their choice of legal devices that do not harm the network or service, facilitate theft of service, or harm other users of the service.” Furthermore, it insists on absolute transparency as to how the network is regulating its traffic and the distribution of content to its users.

See full post at: Demystifying Google and Verizon’s Proposed Policy for the Open Internet.