Why Home Buyers, Investors Should Care About Net Neutrality

Large Indian internet companies like Newshunt.com and Cleartrip.com have pulled out of Facebook’s Internet.org, which attempts to provide web services for free to people who subscribe to a particular plan. Recently, Flipkart had decided to walk out of discussions with Airtel for ‘Airtel Zero’, a plan that provides free access to websites and applications to consumers by charging the companies more.

All the developments were in support of Net Neutrality, now a trending term on the internet.

What is Net Neutrality and why should homebuyers care? 

Net neutrality is the principle that ISPs (Internet Service Provider) should allow internet users to send and receive content, use services, applications, and devices , and access all network, service, content and application providers as long as they are lawful and do not damage their network. The ISPs should also not discriminate against lawful content, services, applications, or devices or practice anything that breach the principles mentioned so far.

Now, why must you, as a homebuyer or a real estate investor, care for Net Neutrality?

●  Because if most of your search for property in India happens on real estate portals, it is important to know that net neutrality makes the internet a level playing field for home buyers and small real estate websites. Free access plans like that of Airtel Zero will allow preference to be created only for applications and websites who pay them money. This means that paid content will become more accessible rather than the best content. This goes against the basic level-playing platform provided by the internet, which has allowed innovations to flourish and fledgling companies to become multi-billion dollar, value creating entities.

●  Because, by violating net neutrality principles, ISPs could also make a paid site faster and make your favorite website Proptiger.com slower and hence, dictate what you should access.

●  Because, ISPs could then make plans that will force you to pay more because of the way they will structure conditional access. This could mean that, for example, to access social media, you may need to pay a fixed amount every month irrespective of your usage.

● Because, when internet users are guided towards paid content and discouraged to consume non-paid content, they will be denied the inherent entrepreneurship and innovation that has made the internet such a force.