Where net neutrality began

Tim Wu, a professor at Columbia Law School, first used the term “net neutrality” in the early 2000s in one of his papers. He describes net neutrality, more properly known as network neutrality, as “information networks are often more valuable when they are less specialized – when they are a multiple platform for multiple uses…” He states that “a neutral network should be expected to deliver the most to a nation and the world economically, by serving as an innovation platform, and socially, by facilitating the widest variety of interactions between people.” So obviously, he is for net neutrality. Most websites that I have visited think that Tim Wu just made up the term net neutrality to make him more money. Later in the article he tells of net neutrality’s origin, when people were worried when cable companies combined with ISPs. Some remedies were anti-discrimination laws, and to allow users to choose their ISPs. Wu then states some problems that might come up on the internet such as blocking, termination monopoly pricing, violations of playing favorite networks – where carriers offer preferred treatment to one application over another, and transparency failures – where carriers fail to tell customers and application directors what they know. There are several more articles linked on his website and this page. These articles might be brought up in future blogs. I just wanted to let the populous know that Tim Wu first came up with the term “net neutrality.”