The recent net neutrality regulations issued by Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has opened the floor for a number of debates regarding the use of the Internet, especially mobile Internet. While no one is too enthusiastic about the regulations, except perhaps a few consumers, companies providing mobile Internet services are very much in trouble due to these regulations. To some extent, both consumers and Internet service providers stand to lose after these regulations come into order.
Here are the top 10 ways in which net neutrality can affect mobile Internet, both in positive and negative ways:
1.Bring Transparency
The biggest advantage of the net neutrality is that it brings transparency to the mobile Internet structure. Whether it is the pricing or the browsing experience, everything is made transparent under the net neutrality regulation. This can make the browsing experience for customers better, providing them control over a lot of things.
2.End Discrimination
With the net neutrality regulation, the discrimination between the businesses that are displayed over the internet search can be brought to an end since it restricts mobile Internet providers from blocking any legal content from appearing in a search.
3.Provide Consumers with More Options
Since all businesses have an equal opportunity to appear in the search, the consumers can have more options to choose from. Whether the business is more developed or is just a small one, the customers have an equal opportunity to access it.
4.Provide Supervision
Mobile Internet is far more private in use and therefore, the chances of misuse of these services especially in children are quite high. With the net neutrality regulation, parents can have a higher level of supervision about their kids’ browsing on their mobile.
5.Businesses Get Equal Chance to Success
With the net neutrality regulation, all businesses get an equal chance to promote their business online. With no limitations on the search results displayed, businesses can make themselves visible in front of consumers quite conveniently.
6.Gives Higher Control
After the net neutrality regulations are in order, consumers can get higher control over their browsing experience since they are not working with any restrictions. The type of businesses they select for their use depend on their own choice, not on what their mobile service providers want them to see.
7.Limited Bandwidth
Here come the disadvantages. Firstly, mobile Internet has limited bandwidth and too much content display without any filtering can make loading quite difficult. Limited bandwidth is one of the major reasons why mobile service providers are against the idea.
8.Increased Charges
In order to meet with the bandwidth demands of consumers, the mobile service providers will have to increase their performance level resulting in higher charges. This increase in price, combined together with the already high mobile service charges can make it unaffordable for a lot of consumers, limiting them in their use of mobile internet.
9.Slowing Down Expansion
The limitations on the mobile service providers put forward due to the net neutrality regulation can slow down the growth of these services. This slowing down in service expansion can affect the performance level of these companies providing the consumers with an unfavorable browsing experience.
10.Slow Browsing for Customers
The limited bandwidth combined together with a large quantity of content can make browsing through mobile internet quite slower than usual. As the browsing speed gets slower, the customers can eventually get frustrated with their mobile services and switching to other providers.
Keeping in mind these different ways in which net neutrality can affect the mobile Internet and the associated experiences, it can be difficult to pass the verdict whether it is completely positive or negative. Depending on the way it is used, net neutrality can be both beneficial and disadvantageous for people.
Much of it depends on the mobile service you are getting. Some companies like AT&T are still breaching the net neutrality regulations.
Editor’s Note: Celina is a technology analyst who writes several technology reviews on the Internet.
