On October 22, the Federal Communications Commission proposed new “Net Neutrality” rules which would prevent Internet service providers (ISPs) from intentionally blocking or slowing down Internet traffic. In response, Sen. John McCain (R – Ariz.) introduced the Internet Freedom Act of 2009, which would stop the FCC from putting the new rules in force, calling them a “government takeover of the Internet.”
The proposed rules would not allow ISPs to block users from running lawful applications or from sending and receiving lawful content. They could, however, deal with spam and other unwanted traffic, as well as illegal content such as child pornography. ISPs could not deprive users of competition from other service providers.
