The US has proposed new rules that would require internet firms to respect the principle of "network neutrality".
The head of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) said that "all web traffic should be treated equally". The new rules are intended to prevent firms throttling bandwidth-sapping web traffic such as streaming video. Networks on both sides of the Atlantic have long argued for a two-tier system, where those that can pay are given priority over those that cannot.
"There are few goals more essential in the communications landscape than preserving and maintaining an open and robust internet," FCC chairman Julius Genachowski said in a speech at the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank.
"It is vital that the internet continue to be an engine of innovation, economic growth, competition and democratic engagement."
It is the first time that the Chairman has spoken out on the issue since being appointed in June.
More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8267366.stm
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The head of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) said that "all web traffic should be treated equally". The new rules are intended to prevent firms throttling bandwidth-sapping web traffic such as streaming video. Networks on both sides of the Atlantic have long argued for a two-tier system, where those that can pay are given priority over those that cannot.
"There are few goals more essential in the communications landscape than preserving and maintaining an open and robust internet," FCC chairman Julius Genachowski said in a speech at the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank.
"It is vital that the internet continue to be an engine of innovation, economic growth, competition and democratic engagement."
It is the first time that the Chairman has spoken out on the issue since being appointed in June.
More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8267366.stm
