Students who visited websites like Netflix, Foursquare, Tumblr and Etsy on Wednesday may have noticed their pages were loading slower than normal.
The delay was part of Internet Slowdown Day, meant to raise awareness about net neutrality. Net neutrality is the idea that Internet Service Providers should treat all data equally, including not charging websites more for faster service or slowing down high-traffic sites.
Participating websites asked users to send in comments to the Federal Communication Commission, preventing big businesses from charging users more for Internet services.
“I don’t think the Internet should be regulated unless you’re breaking the law,” said Logan Cundiff, a 19-year-old UF computer engineering freshman. “It violates freedom of speech and the First Amendment.”
UF law of mass communication professor Clay Calvert said students like Cundiff, who watch shows on Netflix and use more bandwidth, can currently be charged more for Internet services. But the charge might be unconstitutional.
“It would be an abuse,” said Sarah Garcia, a 19-year-old UF computer engineering sophomore. “One more thing to pay for to use when it should be free.”
Calvert said Netflix and other content providers are in favor of net neutrality because they want users to have faster delivery of movies and television shows while the companies that install Internet want to profit from people using more of their bandwidth.
Cundiff said he doesn’t want to pay the extra cost.
“I support…the freedom of the Internet, and they support the people’s preferences instead of other preferences,” Cundiff said.
Calvert had a different opinion on net neutrality.
“I don’t mind seeing companies charge more if people consume some vast amount of content because it does slow down everybody’s traffic,” he said.
People can send in comments to the FCC until Monday about whether they believe the Internet should be a public utility.
[A version of this story ran on page 4 on 9/11/2014 under the headline "Slowdown Day for net neutrality"]
