Although “the Internet” seems ethereal, it is in fact a network of networks that connects billions of users around the world. The capabilities of the Internet are dependent on the reach of those networks. Many governments worldwide are considering how to effectively and efficiently make robust networks available to their citizens to enable them to access the Internet.
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"To close the digital divide, the federal government needs to view broadband like the US Postal Service when it was first developed, concentrating on connecting all citizens rather than just communities where the service makes economic sense." — Randal Picker, Professor of Law, University of Chicago
"Making capacity available in real time at market prices limits hoarding and encourages innovation. Unleashing our brilliant start-up ecosystem through such market mechanisms, along with opportunities for unlicensed access to wireless capacity, is America’s best hope to beat China in 5G." — Kevin Werbach, Professor of Legal Studies and Business Ethics, University of Pennsylvania
"Today, the Internet is a space where every Californian, no matter the color of their skin or the size of their wallets, has equal chance of reaching people online. It's a space where we the people—not AT&T and Comcast—determine what succeeds in our economy, our culture, and our democracy." — Barbara van Schewick, Professor of Law, Stanford University
"Net neutrality protections are absolutely consistent with a free market framework. They are really a way to protect all these free markets that arose from and depend on the internet." — Barbara van Schewick, Professor of Law, Stanford University
"…the Pai proposal isn’t merely tinkering with some of the rules imposed by the Obama administration but, rather, is eliminating the FCC oversight in place for decades. He is, in fact, coming close to eliminating the agency as a relevant institution." — Tim Wu, Professor of Law, Columbia University
"If the FCC bans paid prioritization, then consumers will eventually shoulder the cost of expanding network capacity, not Netflix. ISPs will pass down the cost to users since Netflix cannot pay for fast lanes." — Christopher Yoo, Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania
"Net neutrality touches some very sensitive nerves on both sides of the debate. … It goes fundamentally to the heart of what the internet is and what its role is in our society." — Kevin Werbach, Professor of Legal Studies and Business Ethics, Wharton School of Business
"...without net neutrality the costs associated with obtaining fast internet could make things difficult, and stunt the growth of the next internet unicorn. Startups are very, very important for the growth of the US economy." — Nicholas Economides, Professor of Economics, New York University
"This longstanding neutrality policy has been an incredible success by any measure. Under one or another version of the regime, the internet economy has created at least a million jobs and contributed greatly to the economic growth of the entire country, even when the rest of the economy was flat." — Tim Wu, Professor of Law, Columbia University
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TAP Blog
In an op-ed article for the Los Angeles Times, Woodrow Hartzog, Professor of Law and Computer Science at Northeastern University, shares his insights into Google and Apple’s contact tracing project, and he discusses the “three concerns to keep in mind about relying on technology to mitigate the COVID-19 crisis.”
May 26, 2020
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TPRC48: Research Conference on Communications, Information and Internet Policy
September 25, 2020, Washington, DC
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Fact Sheets
Given the significance of the Internet, preserving its “openness” – an idea often referred to as “network neutrality” or “net neutrality” – has been a long-standing issue.
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Featured Article
This article analyzes the advantages of allowing public access to broadcast frequencies between commercial stations.
January 2, 2011
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