The Fight for Net Neutrality- Latest

So… for those of you who don’t know yet, the Fight for Net Neutrality is on, and has been, for a little while. But the Cable Company Lobbyists, have just stepped up their game.

Here’s a brief summary:

Net Neutrality is the state of fair and objective distribution of content across the world wide web. Internet Service Providers (or ISPs) have, up until now, had a duty to treat everybody’s content equally, and provide the same service to content providers, regardless of affiliation or money. In straightforward language, this means- if YOU are a small, online retailer, you are entitled to the same service from your internet provider, as, say, a massive corporation like Comcast.  

But this may all be about to change, meaning smaller online retailers will risk not being able to provide a good enough service to your customers. This, of course, means you may lose business, and become less competitive.

The £1.5bn UK florist industry is becoming increasingly competitive, and moving online. This means that, if you run a florist in today’s UK market, the outcome of the war for Net Neutrality, may have a massive impact, on your business:

At retail level, the UK Floral industry represents £2.2bn according to the Flowers and Plants Association. In real terms, that means, each of us in the UK are spending on average, a mere £36 on flowers and plants per year. £8 of that is spent on plants.

Let’s see it from the customer’s perspective: if it takes me, the customer, 15 minutes to load the information on your site, because your server has decided to prioritize someone else’s content, I WILL get bored, and I WILL go and spend that sum of money somewhere else, or just go to Tesco and buy my flowers (though perhaps, not for much longer!).

In an increasingly rushed society, I don’t have time to wait endlessly, for your website to load on my screen. And it’s frustrating. Let’s face facts: In the grand scheme of things, to me, the customer, in that moment, flowers just aren’t that important.  

That is why the issue of Net Neutrality is so important to forward thinking business owners. To find out more about the fight for Net Neutrality, check out our earlier blog, Flowers of War.

So far, the main organisation responsible for leading the fight for Net Neutrality, have managed to cause quite a stir amongst congress. Fight For the Future.org ran a mass ‘Internet Slowdown’ earlier this month, to which many, many large online retailers signed up to.

But the fight continues. FFTF report that President Obama had said, as part of his campaign promises, that he would ‘take a back seat to no-one’ with regards to Net Neutrality, and promised to make sure that the commissioners he appointed to the FCC would ‘act accordingly’ to re-instate Net Neutrality. However, we all know how hard it is, to get politicians to make good on their promises.

The Internet Slowdown shook up the cable company lobbyists, who have now reportedly been ‘tag-teaming’ both Congress and the FCC in the hopes they will not have their god-like powers to control what content we have access to, removed.

Fight For the Future are now rallying more support, and asking individuals and business owners alike, no matter what country you are based in, to petition Obama to keep his promises.

We’ll keep you updated, as promised.

If you would like to know how you and your business can get involved in the fight for Net Neutrality, or simply find out more about this important issue, check out www.fightforthefuture.org. 

FLOWERS OF WAR: Net Neutrality and the Online Florist.

"Rage" Copyright- Banksy

Now we are a boutique florists, nestled away in a pretty part of London. We don’t really do politics. However, Net Neutrality is under serious threat. And this is very bad for business.

That’s why a little florists in East Molesey, is getting political, and why it matters to you…

What is Net Neutrality?

Net Neutrality means that Internet Service Providers (or ISPs) are obliged to treat all content providers the same, providing them with the same service, regardless of their affiliations, or lack of, with the ISP.

Net Neutrality is under threat, because since an FCC ruling in 2002, ISPs can give preferential treatment to the content providers of their choosing. Comcast have already done it.

This situation was not the intention of the FCC, and is in fact, counter to their vision for the Internet. It was an unforeseen by-product of the ruling. The FCC are now trying to reverse their ruling.

Whether they will be successful is questionable: the big boys of telecommunications, such as Verizon and AT& T, got a teensy bit upset, about having their newfound freedoms and god-like powers taken away.

In short, the Battle for the Net, is ON.

What does it have to do with small business, such as online florists?

Getting rid of Net Neutrality means that ISPs will be able to provide preferential treatment, to those with the most cash. ISPs will be able to regulate your search results and direct your queries. But this regulation will be done in favour of whoever is paying the ISP to provide them with preferential treatment.

You will not be getting a clear picture, or an honest, neutral answer to your query then, but a sponsored result. Choice becomes an illusion. It’s a kind of ‘you can choose to do whatever we tell you to do’ situation.

“Small businesses are potentially at risk with the loss of net neutrality. Not having the deep pockets of the larger content providers, they may not be able to afford preferential treatment by the ISPs, potentially losing customers who have come to expect fast service.”

         Kassner, for techrepublic.com, January 14th 2014

In essence, saying goodbye to net neutrality may mean that businesses such as ours, may not be able to provide adequate service to you, the customer. Independent businesses may be unable to compete with larger, richer corporations and mutli-nationals. The service we will be able to provide for you, online, would be incredibly slow, and extremely frustrating. You will stop coming to us, in favour of a company with deep pockets, who can provide a faster online response. We will lose valued customers, and revenue. Many small businesses whose main income is from online sales, may be forced to close their doors. Eventually, this will mean less real choice for the consumer. It’s bad for our businesses. And bad for the consumer.

So, why won’t the FCC just reverse the decision?

Well, the Republicans don’t want them to, because it means less power for the big corporations, and less opportunity for them to monopolise and control what online content you have access to. They, and the corporations who favour the ruling, are putting massive pressure on the FCC not to reverse the ruling. If you were 2 years old, and someone gave you a huge packet of sweets, and then told you that you had to share them, what reaction would you have?

Image from www.parentdish.co.uk

Which businesses are fighting FOR the reversal to net neutrality?

This issue is so important to both business owners and the consumer, that 12 of the world’s largest internet sites have chosen to join the fight FOR Net Neutrality. These include Etsy, Kickstarter, Wordpress, Vimeo and Mozilla. And more will join.

Fight for the Future are an independent organisation leading the campaign for Net Neutrality. On September 10^th, they organised a mass protest (of which the aforementioned companies took part).

These companies (and many others) pledged to run a ‘slowdown’ widget across their sites, designed to help you, the user, experience what the Internet will be like for you, if Net Neutrality is shattered forever by the big corporations and their Republican brothers.

Well the Internet Slowdown was a ‘resounding success’, according to FFTF, with more people taking action to defend net neutrality than ever before in history. More than 40,000 websites took part, and at its peak, the protest resulted in more than 1,000 calls to congress, per minute! To see the result of this monumental online protest, check out this infographic.

There are several ways that small business can take part in the campaign, that will not affect our profit margins. Click here for more information.

And just maybe we should be asking if, in the long term, we can afford not to participate?

We need YOU to help us.

As a business with a social conscience, whose main source of income is generated through online orders, and for whom, the majority of marketing, is done online, we of course, have to ask ourselves, if we should be joining the fight for net neutrality. So we thought we’d test the waters, and put it to a vote.

Do you think that we should take part?

Leave a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ in the comments box below please. Your extended views are welcome. 

We will issue the results on this blog, and our Facebook page, at the end of the month, and keep you updated on the progress of the fight for Net Neutrality. Subscribe to this blog for updates.

If you would like to find out more about the protest, and get involved, check out www.fightforthefuture.org

Written by: Kyra Hall-Gelly

for Lily Blossom Florists.