One of the biggest ways that people around the world grow our economy, and communicate with others is through the internet.  Thanks to the Obama-era law called Net Neutrality, many companies that were unknown at the time of the law’s passing, have grown and succeeded into the big companies that they are today, such as Netflix, Google, and Amazon.  If it weren’t for net neutrality making it illegal for big box internet providers to block or slow down these websites, many of these companies wouldn’t be what they are today.  Net neutrality is needed because internet prices would go through the roof without it, “free” video streaming would be no more, and start-up companies and local bloggers would be outcompeted by big-box companies.

The internet is the one of the best ways to buy things, make money, and communicate with others.  Cable companies provide you with the internet that you rely on every day, and ending net neutrality would send the prices of your internet through the roof.  According to Angelo Zino, an analyst for CFRA research, says that it is predicted that broadband prices may go up for some customers.  Since most internet and broadband companies already offer different levels of internet speed, charged at different prices, the customers with higher internet levels would most likely be the ones to see the upshoot in price.  Zino predicts is companies such as AT&T would offer services like DirectTv Now at an upshot price on their more expensive plans.  Another possibility with a different consequence would be if a company like ComCast were to charge extra for Google searches and access to websites like YouTube, if you weren’t on their more expensive plan.  ActionTec was built on connecting people with the internet, because studies show that people in communities with a good, established internet connection are more likely to succeed in life, compared to communities that don’t have a sufficient internet connection.  If investments in the internet building industry go down, it becomes harder to give internet to people who need it (Snider). Opponents of the net neutrality rules say that even when a bill like this passes, nothing really happens right away, so customers wouldn’t really see a change in price.  This, however, isn’t true at all.  Although it is likely that no dramatic changes will happen in the near future, customers may see a slow increase in price.  According to the New York Times, the repeal of the net neutrality rules would be a game-changer to internet providers, because the providers will very rarely lower their price except when under pressure, so the to repeal the laws would do nothing but give the big-box internet companies another reason to upshoot your bills.

In today’s day and age of the internet, one of the biggest ways to watch TV and movies are with free video streaming. Thanks to net neutrality, cable companies were not able to bring the video streaming providers down when they were still developing into the big name brand websites that we know best today.  If we were to get rid of net neutrality, “free” video streaming would suddenly be no more.  Many people use video streaming websites over cable simply because the bills and monthly fees are smaller and less complex than the cable bills that we still see today.  The fear for the repeal of net neutrality for people who frequent these video streaming companies is if they get their internet from a company such as AT&T.  In an interview found on the National Public Radio, AT&T is in the process of merging their companies with Time-Warner, so ultimately, AT&T could block websites such as Hulu, so more of the AT&T customers would watch HBO, a Time-Werner branch.  A move like this would have cost the company big time with the net neutrality laws, but without the laws, there is no consequence.
One of the biggest thing that many net neutrality supporters are worried about is if net neutrality ends, many startup companies, local bloggers, and many other people on the internet that aren’t big box companies would have a hard time succeeding on the internet.  Internet providers would take money from big-box websites, to make their websites run faster under their internet, while others who didn’t have the budget for that would run slower, causing them to potentially lose business.  In an article found in the Los Angeles Times, telecom companies now have the opportunity to set up different lanes of speed on the internet. This could lead to providers making deals with some websites, and completely slowing down or cutting other smaller startups or bloggers out of the picture, who don’t have the budget to pay big-box providers big money to keep their websites in the competition.  Although many companies such as Amazon, Google, Facebook, and over 90 other organizations are standing with the net neutrality rules, but start-up companies and local bloggers don’t have the voice to say what they feel.  In an article found in USA Today, the predicted effect of ending net neutrality is that internet investments are expected to go down, nearly five percent.  The decrease in internet investment would hit small and medium-sized computer hardware suppliers particularly hard, with the lack of business received, due to the less interest in these items.  Opponents of the laws state that most small ISPs (internet service providers) are hit by the net neutrality rules hard, making it hard to finance and get good business.  This claim, however, is nowhere near accurate.  According to USA Today, 22 ISPs have claimed that out net neutrality hurt their business, but out of the over 7,000 ISPs in the United States alone, the ratio of ISPs who were hurt by net neutrality and ISPS that benefited from net neutrality is quite large.  Based on this evidence, net neutrality was found more helpful than harmful. 

The benefits outweigh the potential harm that could be inflicted within the net neutrality rules, that people need to start taking the danger of losing the rules more seriously.  Net neutrality is necessary, otherwise there would be an increase in internet prices, “free” video streaming would no longer exist, and start-up companies would become vulnerable to be outcompeted by big-box companies.  "Net Neutrality is what makes the Internet so great - and so vital for innovation and creativity," says Justine Bateman.  Before the situation becomes worse, it is time that government officials,  big-box companies, and the public, look at and fight the loss of net neutrality.