Last Thursday, the US’s Federal Communications Commission voted three to two to change the way “net neutrality” is governed. Cited as the “death” of open internet by critics and protestors, the move ends rules protecting an open internet and the idea that all internet traffic should be treated equally.

As reported by Al Jazeera, the vote to reverse the agency’s 2015 decision, during the Obama administration, which protected net neutrality in the country means that the floodgate for internet service providers (ISPs) to limit internet access while favouring certain data streams has been opened. This includes “throttling” (the intentional slowing or speeding of an Internet service by an Internet service provider) and even blocking.

The commission’s chairman, Ajit Pai, defended the repeal before the vote, saying, “We are helping consumers and promoting competition… Broadband providers will have more incentive to build networks, especially to underserved areas.” Yet public interest groups including Public Knowledge and the National Hispanic Media Coalition have criticised the move and promised to file a suit. The Internet Association, the trade group that represents big tech firms such as Google and Facebook, said it also was considering legal action (via New York Times).

The change in regulations will not directly affect those living outside of the US, particularly the EU where union-wide net neutrality rules were first adopted in 2015 and went into effect in 2016.

While it might take a while for the immediate effects to kick it, in the long run, this could affect the platforms that have thus far enabled young entrepreneurs to promote their work and for minority opinions to exist in a safe and accessible online space. We hope the rest of the world never catches on.