Net Neutrality: Towards a Co-Regulatory Solution

by Christopher T. Marsden

Net Neutrality is a very heated and contested policy principle regarding access for content providers to the Internet end-user, and potential discrimination in that access where the end-user's ISP (or another ISP) blocks that access in part or whole. The suggestion has been that the problem can be resolved by either introducing greater competition, or closely policing conditions for vertically integrated service, such as VOIP.  However, that is not the whole story, and ISPs, as a whole, have incentives to discriminate between content for matters such as network management of spam, to secure and maintain customer experience at current levels, and for economic benefit from new Quality of Service standards. This includes offering a 'priority lane' on the network for premium content types such as video and voice service. The author considers market developments and policy responses in Europe and the United States, draws conclusions and proposes regulatory recommendations.
Christopher T. Marsden is Senior Lecturer in Law at the University of Essex and the Director the University's LLM in Information Technology, Media and E-commerce. He was the founding co-editor of the International Journal of Communications Law and Policy.

"Chris Marsden maneuvers through the hype articulated by Network Neutrality advocates and opponents. He offers a clear-headed analysis of the high stakes in this debate about the Internet's future, and fearlessly refutes the misinformation and misconceptions."--Professor Rob Freiden, Penn State University

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Nafisa King · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book presents both sides of the argument. A way better source to get your information than memes or Facebook rants.

[Jeffrey Hart · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the best book-length treatment of the subject, focusing primarily on Western Europe but also very useful for those interested in the United States. Two main arguments: net neutrality should be regulated "litely," that is avoid too much interference in the marketplace but guarantee an open market for competitors on the applications and content side, and lite regulation derives from a new idea of co-regulation (that arises when government and business are jointly responsible for a particular part of the market). I occasionally got lost in the details of European regulatory debates but on the other hand there is really no other place to get this information. More technical persons may quarrel with the author on the issue of how the technology creates opportunities for bad behavior, but on the whole the focus on the potential abuses of ISP traffic management in this book is the best I have seen.