User blog:Brandon Rhea/Battle for the Net: Internet Slowdown



Greetings Wikians,

Usually, we come together to share and celebrate what we know and love about our favorite subjects, but today the topic is a bit more serious. Wikia's foundational philosophy celebrates openness and transparency, based on the notion that knowledge is something that should be shared through collaboration. Simply put, our communities would not be possible without a free and open internet.

Currently, a battle rages surrounding the topic of network neutrality. Network neutrality protects the right to communicate freely and openly on the internet by making sure that all information is delivered equally. Some cable companies want to charge websites extra fees to deliver their content. Any site that refuses to pay this unfair toll would be faced with being slowed down and made difficult to load. Imagine if Wikia and all your other favorite sites were stuck in the internet slow lane.

Presently, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is debating legislation regarding limitations for internet service providers, making rules that might allow them to discriminate against smaller or less well-funded web companies.

Today, many of the same groups and online communities who protested against the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), PROTECT IP Act (PIPA), and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Improvements Act are joining together in a digital protest called the "Internet Slowdown," as part of the "Battle for the Net." The FCC is still allowing public commentary on the subject of net neutrality, and these groups and others are joining together to call for a proposal that classifies the internet as a "common carrier." The goal is to pressure the FCC into enacting rules that protect an open internet by making it much harder for cable companies to tamper with applications and content that pass through their networks.

This concerted effort will take over the web with symbolic "loading" icons as a reminder of what the internet would look like without network neutrality. These "loading icons" will promote calls to action for people to send emails, comments, and make calls to the FCC, Congress, and the White House urging to maintain network neutrality and preserve the basic principles the internet was founded on: free and open communication.

Wikia is participating in this "Battle for the Net," and we want to hear whether you and your community will be participating as well. Is this an important matter to your community? Do you and your admins want to participate in this campaign to slowdown for network neutrality? If so, vote in our poll:

Will you slowdown? Yes No

Then, add the following banner to your community (instructions below). We'll make sure your community's voice is heard.

SlowdownModal You can add the banner by following these steps:
 * 1) Copy the code from MediaWiki:SlowdownModal onto a MediaWiki page of the same name on your wikia.
 * 2) Add SlowdownModal to the page where you want to display the banner.

Tell us in the comments how you plan to participate in the Battle for the Net!