Net neutrality: Obama backs equal access to the internet

Barack Obama last night surprised and delighted campaigners for a democratic internet when he came out against plans to end net neutrality in the US, in an intervention which analysts say could prove decisive.

If net neutrality is ended, wealthy companies will be able to pay for their sites and content to be sent to users faster than those of poorer firms or individuals, creating so-called internet 'fast lanes'.

At the moment, a plumber in Chorley's web site is treated no differently to that of Coke. However, the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) is considering changing rules governing data flow which would end this egalitarian treatment.

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Campaigners have called on the FCC to instead make it harder for ISPs (Internet Service Providers) to win court rulings allowing them to violate the principle by designating them as utilities.

In a video statement on the subject, Obama called on the FCC to "answer the call" of millions of campaigners and online protesters and "implement the strongest possible rules" to protect net neutrality, the BBC reports.

He said: "We cannot allow internet service providers to restrict the best access or to pick winners and losers in the online marketplace for services and ideas." He added that net neutrality had always been part of the "fabric" of the net.

Obama said the FCC should create new rules so that "neither the cable company nor the phone company will be able to act as a gatekeeper, restricting what you can do or see online".

Republicans were quick to criticise Obama - senator Ted Cruz of Texas, seen as part of the Tea Party wing, quickly dubbed the policy shift "Obamacare for the internet", complaining it "puts government in charge of determining internet pricing".

While Obama himself admitted his intervention was nothing more than a "suggestion" it represents a "shot across the bow" for FCC chairman Tom Wheeler, who is a former telecoms lobbyist, says Time magazine.

Obama's intervention, says Time, will "shift the momentum in the long-running war over the future of the internet".