The Web: Net neutrality discriminatory?

CHICAGO, July 12 (UPI) -- The idea of Net neutrality sounds fair in the abstract, but experts are telling UPI's The Web column the policy proposals emanating from Congress and the federal bureaucracy may actually be quite discriminatory.

The basic problem with the proposals is more complex than their advocates have let on thus far in their calls to ensure that all Internet content is treated equally, Jerry Ellig, a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, based in Fairfax, Va., told The Web. "It's possible that a network owner -- Verizon, Comcast, etc. -- could discriminate against Internet traffic in a way that harms consumers," Ellig said. "But it's also possible that a network owner could discriminate in a way that benefits consumers -- such as guaranteeing higher-priority transmission for movie downloads." By Gene Koprowski