The answer to that question is no. They had their chances. In the early days of the Internet, when dial-up was king, the telco companies were in the driver's seat. They had the customer relationships. They had the on-ramp to the Internet. But they did not create Google, Skype, Facebook, or even TCP/IP.
Why am I talking about this? Because on Thursday of this week the comments on the FCC's notice of rulemaking on Net Neutrality are due.
And here is what is at stake: the architecture of the Internet.
If we let the providers of Internet access control what runs on their pipes, we will cripple the elegantly layered architecture of the Internet where access is decoupled from applications. And it is that elegantly layered architecture that begat Google, Skype, Facebook, and so very much more.
Don't sit on the sidelines in this debate. Make your voices heard. You can start right here in the comments if you'd like.
