Dear colleagues,
Apologies in advance for the spam, but as many of you know, several
large ISPs and their industry organizations are challenging the FCC's
recent net neutrality order in court. Since the outcome of this case
could have real consequences for how Internet services work in the
future, I'm writing you today to ask you to sign on to a letter that EFF
and ACLU have prepared for the court.
The letter explains several key engineering concepts that are vital to
understanding how the Internet actually operates (e.g. the end-to-end
principle, the layered network stack, how IP routing works, etc.). It
also stays away from legal arguments, and instead focuses on the
technical arguments for how net neutrality has been key to the design
and operation of the Internet since its beginning. It also lays out the
technical consequences that could occur should the FCC's order be struck
down, focusing on how large ISPs could transform the Internet from a
system where innovation can take place without permission to one where
ISPs get to dictate what protocols and services their customers are
allowed to use.
/*If you're willing to sign on and help today, please email me directly
(off list) */and I will be happy to share a copy of the letter for you
to review before you agree to sign on.
The more signatures we can get, the more likely the court is to take
notice. All it takes is an email. Please help us make sure the court
gets the message: from an engineering point of view, neutrality and
openness are fundamental to the way the Internet operates today.
Thank you for your support,