For astute observers of the Internet landscape over the past decade, fewer issues have been as hotly debated as net neutrality. Simply put, net neutrality means that telecommunications companies have to treat all Internet traffic in the same way. This is not as obvious as it seems, and many communication companies are actively opposed: they want to charge people not based on how much bandwidth they use, but than they’re using. It’s pretty clear to industry observers that they want to do this just because they can, not because it’s the right thing to do.

For example, if my electric company could somehow determine what device I’m using with the energy I buy from them, they might charge me more for using a brand of toaster they don’t like instead of one they do. That sounds outrageous, but somehow they seem to think the Internet is different. That they have the right to charge consumers based on what they use it for and not how much they use.

This has direct implications for the adoption of VoIP. In its current form, VoIP threatens the traditional revenue stream of telecommunications companies. People are not only making more calls over the internet but also using third-party services to send SMS for free. As a result, providers around the world have seen their revenues drop dramatically and they are not happy about it. Recently, the leading telecom provider in the Netherlands, called KPN, announced plans that would charge people more to use VoIP services like Skype by doing deep packet inspection and finding out what apps people are using on their internet connection.

Somehow, the telcos would love to turn back the clock and stop the Internet in its tracks when it wasn’t all that powerful. Back when people were still open to the idea of ​​being charged based on what they used instead of how much. But it is already too late. In response to KPN’s plans to charge people more for VoIP, the Dutch government is about to introduce a law making it illegal to charge extra for different types of Internet traffic.

Unfortunately, the war in the US regarding net neutrality is far from won. The FCC is fighting to classify Internet services as a “utility,” which would give it the power to enforce true net neutrality. But strong lobbying by telecommunications companies makes this an arduous task.

I personally feel that it is too late to go back now. People know what an unrestricted internet looks like and are unlikely to ever see things differently again.