[discuss] African take on Net Neutrality

[Carlos A. Afonso]

I would rephrase, Milton:

"Any definition of net neutrality which makes it impossible to charge
users who contract more data transmission capacity higher fees than
people who contract less data transmission capacity is a reduction to
the absurd of the whole idea. It's like saying a 3Gbps fiber link should
be leased for the same monthly rate as a T1."

I would drop the comparison with kWh, since it is a measure of energy
flow, not of capacity (or available power, if you will).

Contracts with data caps (equivalent to contracts with a cap on
accumulated energy usage, to use your comparison, in which the electric
company charges you more per additional kWh if you go beyond a monthly
cap) exist for any capacity and we should strive to abolish data caps.

[] fraterno

--c.a.

On 05/14/2014 10:12 AM, Milton L Mueller wrote:
> Any definition of net neutrality which makes it impossible to charge users who use more data higher fees than people who use less data is a reduction to the absurd of the whole idea. It's like saying a 3Gb fiber link should be leased for the same monthly rate as a T1, or that charging electrical power by the kwh is unfair.
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: discuss-bounces at 1net.org [mailto:discuss-bounces at 1net.org] On Behalf Of Jay Daley
> Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2014 9:01 PM
> To: Chip Sharp (chsharp)
> Cc: 1Net List
> Subject: Re: [discuss] African take on Net Neutrality
> 
> Hi Chris
> 
> On 14/05/2014, at 12:52 pm, Chip Sharp (chsharp) <chsharp at cisco.com> wrote:
> 
>> Now is being proposed the idea that Net Neutrality includes business relationships that don't require direct manipulation of data flow in the network.  Zero rating is one example of this, but not the only one.  
>>
>> Is this is really a Net Neutrality issue or is it an example of an innovative business offering?
> 
> In countries where data caps are common this is often seen as a net neutrality issue.  
> 
> At a technical level the traffic is actually treated differently if the data cap is exceeded, when it will not be subject to the same sanctions applied to non-zero-rated traffic, which is commonly to rate limit or to block entirely.
> 
> regards
> Jay
> 
>>
>> My view is that we still need flexibility to allow for innovation in business practices of ISPs *and* edge providers.
>>
>> Chip
>>
>>
>> On May 13, 2014, at 6:48 AM, Anriette Esterhuysen <anriette at apc.org> wrote:
>>
>>> This is an interesting read on network neutrality from an African internet perspective.  I would summarise it as saying the principle is critical. How regulators apply it has to be sensitive to local contexts. The writer is Steve Song.
>>>
>>> http://manypossibilities.net/2014/05/net-neutrality-in-africa/
>>>
>>> Anriette
>>>
>>>
>>> -- 
>>> ------------------------------------------------------
>>> anriette esterhuysen 
>>> anriette at apc.org
>>>
>>> executive director, association for progressive communications
>>>
>>> www.apc.org
>>>
>>> po box 29755, melville 2109
>>> south africa
>>> tel/fax +27 11 726 1692
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> discuss mailing list
>>> discuss at 1net.org
>>> http://1net-mail.1net.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
>>
>>
>>
>> ** I am employed by Cisco Systems, Inc, but these comments reflect my own opinion and not any position of Cisco. **
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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> 
>