Some of us actually worked in telcom when this problem started. The telcos (aka last-mile owners) really DID want to charge the Netflixes of the world for "backhaul." And they wanted to use their networks as leverage for their own products. More than one VP mentioned such desires in their talks with employees.<p>This situation was more drastic than Microsoft's favoring of Internet Explorer back in the mid-90s, for two reasons - 1) It was much less transparent; 2) Most homes have only one broadband provider in their area, or at best, one relatively fast provider and one not so fast. The main barrier to entry seems to be the cost of deploying plant - a figure I heard a VP give was 1500 USD per home passed - not installed. Witness Google Fiber's retreat from the market.<p>So the argument of consumer choice, even assuming perfect information of a provider's offerings, rings a bit farcial at present.<p>The scenario mentioned earlier -- shaking down popular services under threat of throttling or blocking -- might be countered by acquisition -- say, Google (600B USD) buying AT&T (250B USD) -- but this assumes the telcos wouldn't successfully deploy anti-acquisition tactics, both financial and political.<p>Before you trash this as anti-telco propaganda, I understand that businesses, especially public companies, have a fudiciary duty to their shareholders, which one can reasonably interpret as doing everything in their power, in compliance with the law, to make money. That includes legal political maneuvers such as lobbying. It's up to consumers to make our voices heard, blah blah blah.<p>Another interesting twist in this problem is common carrier status. Does the current legal climate impose risks for moving to a different regime?
The greatest impact I see isn't really the price, its probably priced today pretty close to the what full bundle pricing would be without NN.<p>The real danger is creating an impenetrable barrier to entry. Most people wont want or need full bundle, and will settle for just Facebook/Snap and Wikipedia tiers, making it impossible for startups to reach these customers.<p>The startup costs to entering one of these tiers would be similar to creating your own TV network. Allowing monopolies to push their tax onto the market effectively kills the market.
Net Neutrality is a joke. It's a scam and 100% certain to result in major existing players using NN rules to prevent competition. Anyone with a modicum of understanding of regulated markets can see this.