Allowing actions like this to take place could be the beginning of a very slippery slope. I am not a Netflix user but I disagree on the ability to have a communications provider, such as Comcast, charge both ways for the same service. Comcast customers pay a premium for the access to the internet under the assumption that There is only one internet. Actions such as this are the first steps in creating a tiered internet.

Allowing Comcast to impose a fee to service providers on top of what service providers would be the equivalent had the land line phone companies decided that they would charge all businesses extra to receive phone calls from customers. An example of this using the land line analogy would be: ” A customer of the local General store has a question for the store manager about one of the products the store sells. He calls the store’s phone number only to be disconnected with the phone on the other end never ringing. The phone call did not connect because the store owner had not paid an extra fee to talk to customers on top of the store’s existing phone line connection for general use.

If this action is allowed, a precedent will be set that may cause prolonged damage to the open communication pathway that is the internet. A world where communication companies are allowed to charge both their customers and any organization their customer’s interact with.

Worst case scenario only involving charging extra fee’s to businesses: New technologies may not be able to be developed by starting businesses with great ideas due to the increased overhead of paying potential fee’s.

My Background:

I am not a Comcast customer, nor a Netflix customer. I am a software developer by trade.

If you prefer to not sign the petition I urge you to call, tweet(@FCC), or write the FCC.

Thank you for reading and good luck,
Fred Smith Jr.

Link to petition: http://act.boldprogressives.org/sign/petition_netflix/?source=fredsmithjr
Link to reddit thread:  http://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/edq8x/breaking_the_new_york_times_just_reported_that/