How US Net Neutrality will Affect the World

Net Neutrality Repeal Could Ruin Consumerism

In the 1980s, the internet was released to the United States public for consumption. Originally used by the government, the internet began to change the way we consumed. It changed the way we viewed society. As the net's popularity skyrocketed, companies began to realize just how much of an asset it was. In the late 1990s, American consumers and politicians began to express concern about internet freedom. That is when the fight for net neutrality began. Years later, the FCC began to promote the internet with three principles. The principles provided users with the freedom to access content, run applications, obtain service plan information, and to attach devices with little to no restrictions. As of June 11, 2018, The US House of Representatives failed to act under CRA and the FCC's rules were repealed. So how does that effect the rest of the world?

The United States Has a Large Voice on the Net.

Net neutrality is granted in over 40 companies other than the U.S., so why should they care that we can't access our favorite websites for free? Well for starters, The United States has a very large consumer voice online. According to Statista, 90 million of Amazon Prime Video users were United States citizens. If American consumers ditch Prime for another service they would rather pay for, the content will follow. If this can happen to a large company like Amazon, we can almost guarantee any small up and coming streaming services won't last very long in 2018.

Our Internet Neutrality Will Cause a Price Surge for Other Consumers

Companies overseas will now have a harder time reaching consumers in the United States. So what does that mean for citizens of other countries? Whatever doesn't sell in the US will be the financial responsibility of other consumers. Streaming services like Netflix and Hulu will be universally higher because the rest of the world will have to make up for the United States loss of consumers. Not only will streaming services rise, so will shopping services like Amazon.

Large Companies Will Gain Even More Power

This isn't just the consumer's issue. Small up and coming companies will have a long uphill battle if they ever want to reach the US. With companies, large phone and cable companies partner with streaming services it will only be a matter of time before they make competing startups pay more to reach the consumer. With tools like WhoIs database, companies can track smaller companies’ ISP and other important information to determine if the companies will be streamed quicker-and with better quality to the American consumer. And unless foreign companies are willing to pay a higher rate, they won't see much international success. But all hope is not lost. Although neutrality has been repealed, it is not set in stone. If this doesn't work in favor of large business, it won't last. The best thing the rest of the world can do is wait it out.