Linda Bastida

In support of an open internet!!!

As a consumer, I pay for what I believe is the complete and full internet. That is, I pay internet service providers to allow me to access whatever website I want to access when I want to access it.

Now, I find that my cable company wants to also charge a "toll" on websites that will allow them into the "fast lane". Websites that cannot afford the "toll" will not load as quickly if at all.

All throughout history, there have been people with money and people without money. People with money have always been given preferential treatment over people without money. People with money can buy time on television in order to influence the masses to their way of thinking. Or, people with money can silence people whose opinions and ideas run contrary to their own agendas.

With the invention of the open internet, all this changed. Net neutrality has allowed a level playing field that gives everyone access to the internet on an equal basis.

Let's take my own example. I am an American with a disability. As a consumer, I went to the internet to find a bath chair lift so that I could take a bath for the first time in years. I was able to locate a website owned by a Mom and Pop style store, someplace up north. I found exactly what I was looking for and I have been very happy with my purchase.

If the cable companies had charged "tolls" to these websites, then my choices would have been limited to only those companies that were able to pay the "tolls".

The open internet as we know it has been a force for change and innovation. It has allowed a level playing field for people with big dreams but not that much money.

The FCC must ensure that broadband providers do not block, interfere with or discriminate against any lawful Internet traffic based on its ownership, source or destination.

Regards,

Linda Bastida