For those who don’t know, more than 200 companies, including Twitter (NYSE:$TWTR), Square (NYSE:$SQ), Airbnb, and Reddit, are protesting FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s plans to abolish net neutrality.
On Cyber Monday, companies both big and small published a letter to the public, which illustrated how the famous online shopping day is an example of why net neutrality – which is the equal treatment of all online traffic – is important.
In the letter, the companies cited pointed to the size of the e-commerce sector has become, with Americans spending billions of dollars online on Cyber Monday.
“Because of the open internet, a web developer can launch a business out of their own apartment, an aspiring fashion designer in Wyoming can sell clothes in Los Angeles, or a caterer can find new customers in their town,” the letter expressed. “Disastrously, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last week released a draft order that would end this open commerce by repealing the current net neutrality rules and eliminating the protections that keep the internet free and open for America’s businesses and consumers.”
The FCC is set to vote on Dec. 14, and if the majority were to vote yes on Pai’s plans, the net neutrality regulations under the Obama administration would roll back.
While more than 200 companies are in the midst of protesting, there are a few wireless providers that are applauding Pai’s move.
Here’s what Dave Watson, the CEO of Comcast Cable (NASDAQ:$CMCSA), had to say about the matter:
“The FCC’s proposal to regulate broadband as an information service – changing the Internet back to how it was treated for most of the past two decades – does not end an open Internet. It does not change Comcast’s customer protections. In fact, the FCC proposes to require us to continue to keep customers clearly informed on our net neutrality practices.”
Featured Image: twitter