A Neutral Internet Full of Opportunities Paul V. Mockapetris Chairman & Chief Scientist, Nominum [email protected] Visiting Scholar, l'Université Pierre.

A Neutral Internet Full of Opportunities

Paul V. Mockapetris

Chairman & Chief Scientist, [email protected]

Visiting Scholar, l'Université Pierre & Marie [email protected]

What is Network Neutrality?

• Wikipedia– Network neutrality is a principle that advocates no restrictions by

Internet service providers or governments on consumers' access to networks that participate in the internet.

– Specifically, network neutrality would prevent restrictions on content, sites, platforms, types of equipment that may be attached, and modes of communication.

What is Network Neutrality?

• New York Times– The concept of “net neutrality" holds that companies providing

Internet service should treat all sources of data equally.– It has been the center of a debate over whether those companies can

give preferential treatment to content providers who pay for faster transmission, or to their own content, in effect creating a two-tier Web, and about whether they can block or impede content representing controversial points of view.

What is Network Neutrality?

• As explained to me by a big telco employee– If we make any decisions on what to do with a packet based on

anything other than the address, including who owns the address, we get in trouble.

Recent Headlines• Electronista | Gadgets for Geeks - May 1, 2012

– Sony stalls video service plans over net-neutrality concerns

• The Huffington Post - April 30, 2012– Josh Levy: A Victory for ATT's Shareholders

• GigaOM - April 27, 2012– Even if carriers don't like net neutrality, their investors should

• Save the Internet Blog - April 27, 2012– A Victory for ATT's Shareholders

• PC World - April 27, 2012– Net Neutrality Provision Gets 5.9 Percent of ATT Shareholder Votes

• The Verge - April 27, 2012– ATT stockholders vote down net neutrality measure by overwhelming margin

Recent Headlines• Say Anything - April 25, 2012

– FCC Creates $300,000,000 Entitlement For Rural Internet

• Betabeat - April 24, 2012– Testify! Barry Diller Tells Congress to Rewrite Net Neutrality Laws So They Don't Favor Cable

Companies

• Post I.T. - April 24, 2012– Senate hears about online video and lots of brand placements, too

Who’s Rights Are Violated?

• WiFi provider gives free web access, but substitutes in new ads.

• Parties:– User– WiFi hotspot– Web page creator– Original ad insert

• What about the Firefox tool to suppress ads?

• What about enterprise firewalls?

Who is Responsible?

• Can Google sell the BMW search term to Mercedes?

• Who can own the search term for “generic Lipitor”?

• Who is responsible for malware on a website?

What’s a network?

• Cable companies typically deliver two types of service:– Digital Video

• Multiple “channel” packages

• It may be all digital to a set top box, or real analog channels, or a mix

– IP• Good old Internet

• Do we want the same neutrality rules for both types?

• If priced by usage:– By the show?– By the bits consumed?– Who profits from

multicast?

The Most Basic Question

Observations

• Every party wants no regulation for themselves, but regulation for everyone else– Intellectual property owners vs. users

• Who decides how many DVD regions?• Do copyrights last forever?

– Upper level services vs. IP transit• IP was once a value added service.

– Wireless vs. wired• Wireless is special? What about WiFi?

• A lot of it is “Who pays, and who gets”

My Conclusions

1. Separate solutions for separate societies.– I speak only for my opinion on US policy.– We should learn from differences.

2. The Internet is NOT so special: go back to “Regulate monopolies or create competition”– There’s no purely technical solution, particularly in

a single network layer. From photons to Facebook.– No special exemptions for “high levels”, wireless,

app stores, APIs, etc.

My Conclusions

3. A policy-free network is not the answer– Everyone accepts filtering spam– The network has a role in security

4. Ensure funding for innovation– Whether Bell Labs or IPO model

5. The Network, like other platforms should remain generative

One last Point

• Much of the problem is caused by mistrust & conflict between citizens, carriers & government.

• If we can do more in the network, we can do more for all, but there are hard choices.

Examples

• If we let the operator watch traffic, it can detect attacks & infections– Should it notify the user?– Should it protect other users from the infected ones?

• Let the user specify blocking:– Per destination blocking rules: warn/block/pass– Implement in carrier?– Keep the user’s rules private

Questions?