More links here
I hope this issue heats up more with the public.

I'm going to point to this story because I think

it sheds light on a long running Google story.

The telco's charge for backbone and local delivery has usually been based on level of service, not on data volume.  now the old highway analogy applies here: build a highspeed freeway thru a desert and soon enough there will be strip malls and traffic jams.  VOIP, video, and much more online news and shopping all mean increased revenue to the suppliers and increased service to the subscribers of internet but no additional money for the backbones...they want a piece of the action.

Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/02/08/cerf_calls_for_neutral_net/

By John Oates

Published Wednesday 8th February 2006 14:34 GMT

[The man often called the father of the Internet has said that the future of the Internet is at risk.] Vint Cerf, [co-designer of TCP/IP, ] told Congress yesterday that ideas proposed by telecoms companies for a two-tier internet were fatally flawed and, if necessary, legislation should be passed to make it impossible.

Giving evidence to the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation committee, Cerf called for a "net neutrality" law to force broadband providers to give equal access to any website or application. He fears that if network companies are able to charge content companies it will stifle business start-ups.

Cerf told IDG (http://www.techworld.com/networking/news/index.cfm?NewsID=5324): "Nothing less than the future of the internet is at stake in these discussions. We must preserve neutrality in the system in order to allow the new Googles of the world, the new Yahoo!s, the new Amazons to form. We risk losing the internet as catalyst for consumer choice, for economic growth, for technological innovation, and for global competitiveness.

Law professor Lawrence Lessig agreed pointing to Hotmail and P2P instant messaging as innovations created by "outsiders". He told Red Herring: "New innovation always comes from outsiders.".

In recent weeks, various broadband providers, like AT&T, have said that companies like Google or Yahoo! using broadband networks to reach customers should pay the network providers. This ignores the obvious point that customers are already paying a monthly subscription for their broadband access and if there weren't any content providers there wouldn't be much point paying for access to an empty network. Verizon has made similar comments. ®