Net Neutrality

WHEREAS access to the internet remains an increasingly important resource to individuals, both as consumers and citizens. As consumers, individuals gain access to digital content and any number of goods and services through ecommerce. As citizens, individuals gain the ability to both access and create conduits for discourse, debate, and creativity. The growth of a free and open internet has provided historic advances in the realms of democracy, freedom of expression, freedom of information, communication, research, innovation and economic development.

WHEREAS consumers rely upon Internet service providers (ISPs), which provide end-users access to the internet. Because many ISPs are vertically integrated with owners of basic communications infrastructure, they have the technical ability to act as gatekeepers, blocking or degrading consumers’ access to certain content or limiting the types of equipment that can be attached to the network. Such behavior can severely limit the usefulness of the internet and frustrate consumers’ aims.

WHEREAS around the world, examples abound of ISPs blocking content either to disadvantage competition or limit access to dissenting political views. Such incidents demonstrate the skewed incentives that result when a network access provider also has a stake in the content accessed by its customers. When the provider can selectively control access, it may select against speech or actions that it perceives as harmful to its self-interest. This may regard content, services or devices that compete with the provider’s own interests; or content that the provider disfavors, such as criticism of the provider itself. These harms are exacerbated when a lack of competition prevents users from migrating away from discriminatory providers, as well as when consumers lack the ability and information necessary to discover any discriminatory practices.

NOTING THAT a neutral internet grants individuals:

• the right to attach devices of their choice;
• the right to access or provide content and services of their choice;
• the right for their access to be free from discrimination according to source, destination, or content.

NOTING THAT a neutral internet contains ISPs and communications networks that:

• do not unfairly block content or devices;
• do not deliberately degrade access for content or devices ;
• do not prioritize data according to its content, source or destination;
• do not discriminate against particular providers of content, services, or devices.

In order to promote vigorous free speech, a vibrant business community and unfettered access to all information on the internet, Liberal International:

• calls upon its member parties to take action at all levels (international, regional, national and local) to ensure that governments recognize, promote, and encourage the above-defined principles of net neutrality;
• calls upon regulators to assess the level of competition in broadband internet access, and take steps to ensure that consumers have continued access to a neutral network;
• urges regulators to prevent ISPs and network providers from engaging in unfair discrimination against content, services, or devices;
• urges ISPs to provide consumers with more information about limitations on internet service plans, as well as any network management occurring on their networks and how that management affects access to particular content, services, or devices. Such management should be limited to legitimate purposes.