The Washington Post has reported that the Federal Communications Commission has voted in favor of advancing a proposal that could dramatically reshape the way consumers experience the Internet. This move opens the possibility of Internet service providers charging Web sites for higher-quality delivery of their content to American consumers.
The plan, approved in a three-to-two vote along party lines, could unleash a new economy on the Web where an Internet service provider such as Verizon would charge a Web site such as Netflix for the guarantee of flawless video streaming. Read more..
Another significant change took place in Europe as the Court now requires search engines like Google to delete personal information upon request. Developers are scurrying to figure out how you incorporate this mandate into a highly automated environment. While there is little risk (or hope) of such a measure being approved in the USA, the BBC recently reported on Europeans’ desire to remove their “past online lives” in an article titled: US v Europe – a cultural gap on the right to be forgotten.
Now that these revisions have broken the Wild West-type freedom we have come to know on internet use and content, expect more challenges – and opportunities – to come.