The End of the Internet? IMPORTANT

[snot]

Please nominate and kick this.

From http://www.thenation.com/doc/20060213/chester

The End of the Internet?

by JEFF CHESTER



The nation's largest telephone and cable companies are crafting an alarming set of strategies that would transform the free, open and nondiscriminatory Internet of today to a privately run and branded service that would charge a fee for virtually everything we do online.

Verizon, Comcast, Bell South and other communications giants are developing strategies that would track and store information on our every move in cyberspace in a vast data-collection and marketing system, the scope of which could rival the National Security Agency. According to white papers <http://www.democraticmedia.org/issues/netneutrality.html> now being circulated in the cable, telephone and telecommunications industries, those with the deepest pockets--corporations, special-interest groups and major advertisers--would get preferred treatment. Content from these providers would have first priority on our computer and television screens, while information seen as undesirable, such as peer-to-peer communications, could be relegated to a slow lane or simply shut out.

Under the plans they are considering, all of us--from content providers to individual users--would pay more to surf online, stream videos or even send e-mail. Industry planners are mulling new subscription plans that would further limit the online experience, establishing "platinum," "gold" and "silver" levels of Internet access that would set limits on the number of downloads, media streams or even e-mail messages that could be sent or received.

To make this pay-to-play vision a reality, phone and cable lobbyists are now engaged in a political campaign to further weaken the nation's communications policy laws. They want the federal government to permit them to operate Internet and other digital communications services as private networks, free of policy safeguards or governmental oversight. Indeed, both the Congress and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) are considering proposals that will have far-reaching impact on the Internet's future. Ten years after passage of the ill-advised Telecommunications Act of 1996, telephone and cable companies are using the same political snake oil to convince compromised or clueless lawmakers to subvert the Internet into a turbo-charged digital retail machine.

(More at http://www.thenation.com/doc/20060213/chester )

[MakeItSo]

1. People obsessed about Roe when it came to Alito

It's shit like this that they should be even more concerned about. Not to minimize the importance of choice for women, of course.

[Wilms]

You got it. n/t

[smartvoter]

8. Dead on. I was practically yelling this to every wingnut I know. nt

[The Backlash Cometh]

9. Not enough visionaries.

I'd be surprised if politicians in Washington hadn't been lobbyied a plenty and knew that Alito would be a deciding factor on more than just the abortion issue. But did the Democratic leaders come up with anything new? Nope. It was the NYT who stated that overreaching executive power would be Alito's legacy. Until they came out and put it in the paper, no one else thought to push it.

[Lorien]

31. Indeed; there's a lot to be concerned about when it comes to Alito

and corporate vs. citizen's rights. Alito will always chose corporate profit over our freedom, health, and environment. THAT was the real attraction for the right wing.

[qanda]

2. What makes me think this is totally possible

Is how much people are now willing to pay for television. We cannot afford to let this happen.

[Whoa_Nelly]

3. If that does happen here, how's that going to keep people from accessing

providers from other nations? How would this affect other nations? It's a stupid idea. The companies here are already making tons of revenue from basic to high-speed subscribers.

Assholes! Nobody in the corporate world really cares if millions if individual Americans go broke, can't afford online businesses and/or connections...yes, a stupid idea. Drive the individual into extended credit/debt...who cares if the kids eat or the rent or mortgage is paid.

[FreedomAngel82]

18. And with this how are people

going to be able to use ebay? Remember when Bush and Cheney mentioned them as business in 2004?

[smartvoter]

4. k&r nt

[Dem Agog]

5. This is an old tale...

I've been around on the Internet for a couple of decades now. The old joke is that on Usenet the "DEATH OF THE INTERNET" posts were almost daily.

What's the name of that mythical creature? The snake that you chop off one head, ten more grow in its place?

That's what the Internet is.

The Internet is bigger than US companies. It may have started in the US but it's worldwide. It's distributed computing and communications, plain and simple.

If anyone seriously makes a dent in IP-based distributed communications (i.e. the Internet) a dozen other ways to do the same thing will sprout up in its place.

Just my nutball prediction.

[dweller]

15. Oruborus n/t

the snake.

on second thought, oruborus is the snake devouring its tail. . . the one that you chop off the head and 10 replace it? um...maybe the one with the 'don't tread on me' caption.

dp

[Craig3410]

22. Hydra.

And yes, I see the internet like that.

The internet is too anonymous for it to shut down.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

40. too many retired Hackers would be willing to come out of retirement

before they let this happen. imho

[RhodaGrits]

53. Tell that to your average Chinese internet user. n/t

[BushOut06]

19. It does smack of internet urban legend

Kind of like those annoying Yahoo IM's I keep getting that state "Yahoo is going to start charging for IM, email, etc if you don't forward this IM to at least 10 of your friends".

[GoneOffShore]

46. Not an urban legend.

Common Cause link here http://www.commoncause.org/HandsOffMyInternet

And then do your part.

This is the next big "land grab"!

[Leopolds Ghost]

26. "The old joke is that on Usenet the Death of the Internet posts were

almost daily."

Since Usenet still exists and is reasonably active (and a better source for information than many sectors of the commercial Web), perhaps you can tell us if this is still true.

[alfredo]

28. I'll get my ham license.

My old morse intercept and crypto buddies will be there. Then drive the guys in Virginia crazy trying to decrypt one day pads, only to find it's mostly insults, dirty jokes and old war stories.

QYQOCTPETDVHIJSFUCETRAXFMSKKWRXNCAYYJVNK
DJNOMIMHUWTRHGMIRHSUPUFKQMMSHRYONIRIYMUX
PPOCVKIAOAFHSJLDLFALWRMMJDOJITUPQTSVHITS
WCBOIBUQRYIPDRWTFQBRHXIUQSHSHUIAXFOBNKOX
UXWSFJATLWQUNIOKYORBPOJVMLWBFXELYLDTROTB
DFNWDYTGHHTPWYKTLWJQUBJQGQBXJVKMRVYMHYMT
OOUEYVWOHPDQQJOOCQVJXINAHTMYRGNBAUXUUBWN
SGDEAOKWPEQDONVSUWUKCNDCWJXAGGYSXWVRSDQS
FDCPKSABKDJMRRRDWSHOUHGRSTCIYBFQPODVRDFA
VKOVPLGKLCOGQAIQVEJNCUMFTNUAWJOJGBQYAJYU
RQWJUEPWYCVMUIBBWAGTLNNIVGFERYPJGVBUYNPQ
NEHKOWFLJGJQTRBWBFONFQDDXETJYMIBQFCUYJGF
TACSLJMNGWRKAJWATLEIWYWUXLATTFPHVBBAXOUU
KSPSSXLKJKPEQACXTUVTMULOSRWYPLCNBXYLIQSI
SNVWCPFYGFHYAQHITJIIVWHDEPSPABPITMOLWDXO
GXKUNSEESRFLYOSHPSAANIGIUSCGXYIEVVFBNYTJ
VHWHWSLMXQGIXNPXRQJLBYWNPWEGERUOBWKTQRLS
LNFJRQSLTBLWWVXBMELQTCYJYNTVWFUIGMSMPPGA
RYXCROQUXLHLNYQQFVIAWDPVNLXANUPWRWGRDPWS
TLJMGJDKITJHXFQEUWGEKVOWXGOWOJLKVETIVGEW
JUGXRFIJOEHQVQLJPROQBBWVVECVHKNEQCHNMADI
BOXBCUOBQCHPIDHWUBPBKGWRMYBPKDXLSLMNMKOJ
FMEYLCEUNQCMIVXKADCWUFHSSSLSIBOQEEPRVSML
VMPWWVXIQSRYQWUOMHWVKBPDCFRHUWSKFDMMGOCS
LOIRJUSYJHIMMHBNEDGKFNHVHKWLSIMPJOUVRRET
UXTMBFOJUMGFTKPOPAMVBGFVLCUOQVRTAFVXNAQD
AEJQAYUGWQADIYTKLUVFRPVIOKEEAHTYRRCFUXJL
JMWUVSIRYHHRKBSOGETHIBRGLHVVLDLJDOJTMVYT
AYDNMEEGDKWMSWOWJBSKIWDQBCFTXFHGGDFIWRBF
NEWTYQJFOQCBFVAVXAPQKTYVPBFSORHJKXAQTEUQ
GGBEBDMVGARLIGFDPHTXIWQJQVBFTQWGADRLHBRC
HKJPNSMUWFSVGLRRTTHBCCUQHFYIFFXOHDSYHIMT
QFGUAWHQNTLTBCHFIJSVBCXAPIONXFKAFUHODFCP
TUDGQCPDCWCGPBJGQQQOIHLTNARYAAYGJWAIJSXI
SPBTQROHUVIBWGMMRORJTFGWLWRKHUGYFTQRNUCL
EVLLKMWNPTKGVLPXQMEQCETNBHYNTSMVEQVJPHAO
MVFOQDJNMNDQWHSDRFYAXBOMDECTHUIXMEKNUJVB
AHUCCAQRUPDOIUBJVEXPIMGXGOOAKIOAHLKUNKMA
YDUYBDDGTIVXFDWLTFMNYOHVRTMNSKRGTJNIVKIK
HXFENKLVVYQNHRSVKSVMHHCJVFBHETHEAAXFVBGQ

[GoneOffShore]

47. It's about controlling the pipes

I don't think that Common Cause would take up the banner unless this threat were real.

http://www.commoncause.org/HandsOffMyInternet

[kysrsoze]

57. Yeah, I don't think this will ever happen - here's why...

I work for a major telecommunications corporation. People simply will not pay large amounts of money for bandwidth and services. Prices have dropped steadily over the last few years from originally about $60 bucks a month to the point where you can now get broadband for less than AOL dial-up, often less than 20 bucks a month. Wireless broadband prices are continuing to fall and will eventually be very inexpensive too. Even the electric companies want to get into internet access. There are simply too many ways to get on Internet these days. Web hosting is also dirt-cheap.

People are certainly willing to fork over cash for content, but not access. This is why the bells are putting so much effort into IPTV. They want the cash cow that the cable and satellite companies have in cable channels and pay-per-view movies. This is where the real money is.

[GoneOffShore]

58. It may be where the real money is

But why would Common Cause http://www.commoncause.org/HandsOffMyInternet and the EFF be putting so much effort into this if it wasn't a threat?

We were all sure that 2004 was a done deal and Kerry would be elected. We were all sure that Bush wouldn't get in in 2000.
The only way to keep these bastards from a complete takeover is to keep the pressure on.

Send the petition on - this isn't your "Congress is going to close down NPR" email - This is the big internet land grab brought to you by the corporate bastards who want to shut down dissent.

Follow the link http://www.commoncause.org/HandsOffMyInternet

[earth mom]

6. If it comes to this, I will give up the internet.

I lived without it for 38 years, I can live without it for the rest of my life. :shrug:

[BushOut06]

12. Yes, but for 38 years you had to go to the store to get porn

Where will millions of Americans get their porn without the Internet?

[earth mom]

23. It's not that I don't care about losing the internet...

but I'm not gonna play their game. They aren't gonna control me.

As for where people will go to get their porn...since it's not a priority for me I don't have an answer for you, though I'm sure you'll think of something. ;)

[CanOfWhoopAss]

25. I don't watch it but considering the money that is made it would be in

that industry's best interest to help keep the internet free. They ought to poor a tone of money into stopping the telecoms and ISPs. The government is in favor of it because they have no idea how to control this medium. Especially since conservatives finally got control of the M$M.

[annabanana]

42. And how will you get the information you need

to be a good citizen?.. (see my post downthread)

[yorkiemommie1]

7. they will sneak it up on us in increments

until they shut us out completely.

[cdsilv]

11. way too many businesses rely on the 'internet' to facilitate ...

people working from their homes instead of putting them in hi-cost office space.

The company I work for is one. I work for a company based in NC, but I live in NWFL and cover NWFL and AL.

This would not be possible w/o the internet. Most of the companies that make the technology that enables the internet do the same.

If the 'backbone' providers try to do this, I have a feeling that their tech suppliers would revolt. It would mean changing the business model that most of those companies (even the backbone providers) have adjusted to since the rise of the internet.

Yes, I come from the days of the EZnet at DEC - a private, DECnet based network that predated the internet.

I've worked on private nets and the internet, and while the private nets were more secure and were not troubled by viruses and worms, external connectivity was spotty at best.

Trying to 'service levelize' the internet would probably result in mass defection of customers from those who try to do so.

I know that if my ISP tries this, I'll go to another ISP. Period.

And like someone said, I could do without it. I don't know if my employer could.

[upi402]

21. The Corporatocracy doesn't care about small business

They're happy to snuff it all, and gobble up any market they want.

[ellenfl]

10. i would think that vendors on the internet would

have something to say about it. just about every retail establishment does business on the 'net. overhead is less on the 'net than in the brick and mortar stores. tamper with the market's bottom line and you invite trouble. i don't see how the communications companies could do this. scary thought, tho'.

ellen fl

[autorank]

13. Bring it on, suckas! This is your Waterloo!!!

I've been waiting for this. Why? Well, I have full faith and give complete credit to the stupidity and greed of the telephone companies. They exist in a socialistic setting -- 10% plus costs for decades plus vast amounts of control. That changed for a while but they used their cash pools to buy up the national companies (e.g. ATT). Now, they're moving in for what they think is the kill.

Here's what they're after. They remember when these were the rates for email:

$14.00 an hour
$00.05 per "kilo packet" -- 1000 characters in and out.
(from 1983 - 1992 explaining why there were only .5 million email users in the mid 80's, all corporate/government.)

These prices were attacked by AOL with flat rate pricing and have never been seen again.

But the telcos are used to getting their way. They think that they can just go to their state regulatory commission and get the approvals.

WAKE UP. IT'S TIME TO MAKE THE POINT. THEY CAN'T STEAL THE INTERNET. IT WAS FUNDED WITH FEDERAL DOLLARS. IF THEY WANT TO PAY THE GOVERNMENT BACK AND SEND AL GORE A THANK YOU LETTER, THAT MIGHT DO IT. THERE WOULD BE MORE THAN ENOUGH MONEY TO FUND A NEW PUBLIC NETWORK.

This is hardball. There are so many 10s' of millions of people ready to rally on this, it's amazing. NRA gets whatever they want with 2.0 million members. How about 100,000,000 pissed off internet users (a low estimate) writing angry emails to congress. Wait until this hits big time.

This is a great battle. Bring it on suckers. You're toast. You will be crushed.

PS. The big winners: 1) the public which will see a huge victory for mobilization--hell just log on and do it, again and again; 2) Vonage and the other alternative carriers, especially any local phone alternative that does not participate in this, especially if they run ads against it.

Yehaaaaa, lets get ready to rumbelllllllllllllllll!

[DemInDistress]

20. autorank...great post boy did that make me feel better

hell yes,lets join together as a bloc and demand from Congress this kind of corporate greed will not do. Its a severe big brother issue also,who wants employee's from Verizon,Bell and others viewing my emails and web sites I visited,we already have the Pentagon and NSA doing that ... ^5 to you and now I can sleep knowing we do have a chance to stop this Draconian move by big corporations.

[autorank]

29. It's like making people pay fto breathe! They are big and stupid, we are

legion! We will nail them to the wall.

Now, here's another point. There's a concept in business called "good will," the general attitude of the customer base toward the corporation. When they're trying to sell themselves to another company, there is always a calculation for "good will," it's worth money.

Imagine the impact on telephone company "good will" value when they try to pull this one over on us. It will be devastating. There will be resounding defeat followed by enduring hostility. Nobody who is net semi net-literate will ever want to buy their products again.

They are fools beyond comopare. I'm just amazed that they think that they can get away with this.

Sleep and dream of victory!

[fooj]

56. Pity the fools...

:spank:

peace.

[Canuckistanian]

14. Please! Don't let this overtake us

I like my freedom, aand I'll pay for it with whatever it takes.

[gordianot]

16. Telemarketers went away they were an annoyance.

Libruls and Wingnuts both do business on the internet. Something we can all agree on. Eliminating the Internet would be political suicide.

[FreedomAngel82]

17. More way to help control the message

:mad:

[AnnieBW]

24. Hate to say I warned you...

But I posted a thread about this when Alito was being confirmed. The VoIP community is screaming bloody murder about this bullshit.

[moondust]

27. VoIP.

I'm sure the big telcos see dark clouds on the horizon as a lot of small VoIP providers are only charging 1 cent per minute or even less with an unlimited plan. Gonna be hard to finance a McMansion on that kind of revenue trickle.

[InsultComicDog]

30. There's a free VOIP I tried out yesterday

at www.voipstunt.com

[moondust]

32. Yep.

I've tried a couple of those free places. One was free when it started out but is now charging about a penny. I don't know how they could stay completely free forever. Either way, bad news if you're a big telco.

[GoneOffShore]

33. So, here's a link

http://www.commoncause.org/HandsOffMyInternet

Help do something about this.

A friend of mine describes this attempt as "The next big business land grab," and he's right.

Sign the petition on Common Cause and forward it on to friends.

Freedom of the Internet belongs to the guys who own it and it belongs to the people.

[GoneOffShore]

34. Kicked

And keep kicking -
Especially if you want to have a forum that reaches large numbers of people.

EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) http://www.eff.org/
has also been pushing against the effort by big telecoms to up the prices. This is a "public utility" not a corporate feeding trough.

[GoneOffShore]

35. And another kick

and recommend.

Can we all get letters out to these corporate raiders? The Common Cause link http://www.commoncause.org/HandsOffMyInternet

gives you the tools to send an alert to almost unlimited numbers of your friends and colleagues (20 at a time).

[madinmaryland]

36. I thought you meant this end of the internets

http://www.weirdity.com/internet/eoti.html

or this...

http://www.1112.net/lastpage.html

[Justice Is Comin]

37. Here is an email address

if you want to voice your outrage that internet radio is trying to be pirated for fees that will not make your day either.

I already sent mine....I told them to set their pirate sails for another direction. It was our tax dollars that put those satellites in the sky for the technolgy to be there in the first place. Our fees are already paid.

Tell them you want internet radio to remain free..... [e-mail]

[AlabamaYankee]

38. Take a Deep Breath...

Then read Steve Gilliard's take on the issue (http://stevegilliard.blogspot.com/2006/02/lawsuit-mania-end-of-internet-jeff.html). If large companies that rely on email and the internet to conduct business feel they might have to pay more money to providers it won't happen.

Gilliard's always a good read.

[annabanana]

41. but THEY will get "bulk mail" rates..

and WE will be paying for that first class stamp..

[Raydawg1234]

59. But they'd still be paying more you see. This does not help their bottom

line. This will never happen, too many people rely on the internet for business. Small businesses, ebay users. There would be public outcry.

[annabanana]

39. The "free and open" internet is the ONLY thing that has

slowed the complete corporate takeover of our lives. (as facilitated by the BFEE administration). It is the ONE FACTOR that is getting any real information to the people.

When Nixon went down, Cheney & Rumsfeld saw that it was the free American media that made the downfall possible. They started neutering it immediately by branding it "liberal" and then hog tied it with deregulation promises and a stick & carrot approach until it was completely tamed.

During THIS takeover attempt, they had not counted on citizens being able to assemble online, exchange information, get the "big picture" that they were trying so hard to suppress. Now they have the big media companies to do their bidding... They point out how immensely profitable it will be to control even this last bit of "public, civil space", and wink at each other in the knowledge that, if they can't take complete control THIS TIME...

the NEXT TIME we will have no place to gather and organize.

[sam sarrha]

43. BOYCOT ..put them out of buisness

[milkyway]

44. The Internets are too damn democratic. They give power to the powerless.

They must be destroyed.

[mzmolly]

45. Could this have SOMETHING to do with the WH request for information?

I realize that they are using the info to spy on americans, but I wouldn't doubt a "win/win" for them again. :eyes"

[Tigress DEM]

49. Thank GOD for Google!

If they hadn't resisted, this could have been a done deal already.

[Tigress DEM]

48. Why do our leaders HATE our Freedoms?

Because it makes US their regulators.

Enough is enough. WAKE UP the HOUSE to the need to IMPEACH --- NOW!

IF you haven't heard there is another Memo where Bush & Blair actually admit the things the DSM alluded to.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1700879,00.html

Olbermann supposedly discussed it last night, but I can't find what he said.
USA today supposedly addressed it, but the link failed on me.


Quick, DEMAND that your House Rep sign on to IMPEACHMENT NOW before they cut us off the web and we have to organize secret meetings in our homes that will be gestapoed because the domestic spying won't stop until those breaking these laws are stopped.

Find out who you House Rep is and find 20 friends to either do a sit in - camp right in their office and DEMAND IMPEACHMENT - not just of *ush, but all his cronies or at least send an email.

http://www.house.gov

put in your zip and you have your rep's name

[GoneOffShore]

50. Trying to keep this kicked

so that more people will see it and sign the various letters here

http://www.commoncause.org/HandsOffMyInternet

I've sent via the website to over 40 people.

Keep the Internet a public utility!!

Don't let Congress hand it to the corporate pirates!

[GoneOffShore]

51. And here's some more

from EFF
~ News From the Evil Parallel Universe EFF Chair
Brad Templeton--or rather his evil twin--explains how CALEA
wiretapping regulations will be a boon to incumbent telcos,
and a marvelous disaster for new entrants into world of
telephony.
<http://ideas.4brad.com/node/346>

Don't forget to sign the petition at http://www.commoncause.org/HandsOffMyInternet

[PatrioticLeftie]

52. God damn corporations

They never stop, do they?

[Wilms]

54. .

[rooboy]

55. That would be true IF the telcos were the only players...

One of the biggest potential players in Germany, for example, is the railways. Electricity companies and utilities are potential players. Anyone who has a communication grid that can carry data (electrical cable included) is in the running.

[Raydawg1234]

60. I doubt it. Too many businesses like Amazon want to reach as many people as

possible. Advertisers, Retailers don't want to prevent people from purchasing their products. This only benefits telecoms.

[SillyGoose]

61. They're going to 'Murdoch' the internet with this.

Without proactive intervention, the values and issues that we care about--civil rights, economic justice, the environment and fair elections--will be further threatened by this push for corporate control. Imagine how the next presidential election would unfold if major political advertisers could make strategic payments to Comcast so that ads from Democratic and Republican candidates were more visible and user-friendly than ads of third-party candidates with less funds. Consider what would happen if an online advertisement promoting nuclear power prominently popped up on a cable broadband page, while a competing message from an environmental group was relegated to the margins. It is possible that all forms of civic and noncommercial online programming would be pushed to the end of a commercial digital queue.

Oh, God. I am going to be sick. We've all said that if it wasn't for the internet we wouldn't know what's going on because we have no media to speak of, just the modern day version of Pravda. They're going to use this to sanitize our information on the internet, too.