Internet Regulation in China

This article from the New York Times discusses the many Internet restrictions placed on those who live in China. I think it is important to look at other countries’ policies concerning government regulation of the Internet to be able to view America’s policies from a more informed and worldly perspective. In China every Internet user is required to submit their legal name to their Internet service provider, specifically cellphones companies that provide mobile Internet access, to improve the Internet service provider’s ability to report crimes to the government. Citizens are frequently detained or jailed for discussing multiparty democracy on microblogs similar to Twitter. Access to websites from other countries is often blocked.

This article from Reporters Without Borders also discusses the intense control of the Internet by the Chinese government.    In 2012 China implemented a “communications blackout” in Tibet to prevent media coverage of the protests there. China cut off Internet connections in that area and was highly focused on removing Internet content related to the protests. According to Reporters Without Borders, the Chinese authorities frequently cut off certain regions Internet access as a strategy to “subdue them in silence.”  In 2012 Chinese Internet users were not able to search the web for the word “occupy” followed by the name of a Chinese city.

This article from USA Today also discusses the “stifling, bizarre, and sometimes dangerous world of Internet censorship in China.” If you are on the Internet in China and search “persecution,” “Tibetan independence,” or “democracy movements” you will only be taken to a black page that says, “page cannot be displayed.” Because of their strict rules regarding the Internet and anti-government talk dozens of “cyberdissidents” are jailed every year in China.

These are two comics depicting the Chinese Firewall, an Internet network security system. The first comic shows dozens of Internet users getting nothing but “walls” on their computers. In China so many topics and pages are blocked that citizens likely see the blank page very often, making browsing and research likely very frustrating and difficult.

The second comic shows a tour being given during the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Instead of the Great Wall of China, tourists are shown “the Great Firewall of China.” The wall shows sites that “cannot be displayed” such as humanrights.org and tibet.com.

It is easy to become frustrated with American Internet regulation, but when compared to other countries such as China it is clear that we take many rights for granted here.  Though our Internet is clearly not as heavily controlled as China’s, we still must take steps to promote Internet freedom and privacy in the United States.

Regulation of Internet Gambling

The legality of Internet gambling in the United States is very complicated, but a good resource is Cornell University's legal site. There have been many bills introduced or passed, including the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, the Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act, and the Internet Gambling and Tax Enforcement Act. The 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act was confusing to many because it didn’t make online gambling illegal, but it made it illegal for payment companies to process the money from gambling activities. This act led to a heavy decline in online poker playing in the United States. This law still allows for other types of Internet gambling including online lotteries and Internet betting on horse races.

Many people are focus the financial and social aspects of Internet gambling when they argue against it in Congress. They claim that it can be an invisible addiction until the person is in deep debt and their life is ruined. A famous quote regarding online gambling is, “You just click the mouse ad lose your house.”  Internet gambling is a very complicated topic in the United States and the legality of it is different in every state. New bills and laws are made frequently to control and regulate Internet gambling.

President Obama & Net Neutrality

Recently President Obama released a video and statement endorsing a free and open Internet, commonly known as “net neutrality.” He thinks that the Internet should be regulated like public utilities such as electricity and telephone services. The concern with an unregulated Internet, according to this article by The New York Times is that Internet service providers can intentionally block or slow down certain content, while allowing things such as paid ads to reach customers quicker. Some Internet service providers who depend on revenue from broadband subscriptions are against President Obama’s regulation of the Internet because it would control their pricing.  In this video released by The White House, President Obama said, “Whether you use a computer, phone, or tablet Internet providers have a legal obligation not to block or limit your access to a website.”

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President Obama also released a statement, which can been seen here on The White House Website,  includes these four rules that he thinks the Federal Communications Commission should enact to protect net neutrality.

-No Blocking: As long as a website is legal, Internet service providers cannot block you from viewing it.

-No Throttling: Internet service providers cannot intentionally slow down or speed up access to certain content.

-Increased Transparency: Apply net neutrality at all points of interconnection between the Internet service provider, the Internet, and the consumer

-No Paid Prioritization: No service should be slowed down because it does not pay a fee.

Despite the President’s support, many Americans are still against net neutrality and government regulation.  

This comic shows some reasons why people are against net neutrality and turning the Internet into a public utility. It shows the wires that provide things such as innovation, new content, fast service and consumer choice being cut before they can reach the consumer.  The comic also shows the consumers down below saying “But they say we’ll be better off this way.” This illustrates that even if people see something that seems wrong, if the government tells them it is a good idea they will go along with it. Some people believe that if the government controls the Internet like a public utility that innovation and new ideas will cease. They also think that they will lose the ability to choose between service providers.

This comic illustrates why many people support net neutrality and government regulation of the Internet. They believe that only big companies that can pay a lot benefit from an unregulated Internet because they have enough money access to quicker speeds. Everyone else, including most consumers, are hurt because there is not equal access to all connections and speeds on the Internet. 

There are so many things we have to consider when thinking about government regulation of the Internet and net neutrality.