” the beginning of the end of the INTERNET as you know it”

“The deal marks the beginning of the end of the internet as you know it,” said Josh Silver, president of the Free Press consumer group, talking about the Google-Verizon tie-up. A lot of concerned groups think that if it came to pass, would change the very nature of the internet and how it operates

Talks about US regulators having closed-door meetings intended to find a way to make sure all web data is treated equally, has stopped, according to BBC News.

The Federal Communications Commission began the meetings after a court limited its net regulation powers.

Read more here.

What is Net Neutrality?

Network neutrality (also net neutrality, Internet neutrality) is a principle proposed for user access networks participating in the Internet that advocates no restrictions by Internet Service Providers and governments on content, sites, platforms, on the kinds of equipment that may be attached, and no restrictions on the modes of communication allowed and to treat all web traffic equally, regardless of content type or origin – serving only as a one-size-fits-all pipeline for whatever data is passing from content providers to end users.

That extends to the idea that ISPs should not block any lawful content or control their infrastructure to preferentially deal with any kind of data.

The issue now is how much ISPs should be allowed to control the size of the pipes – that is, actively controlling the bandwidth available to certain websites based on the type of content they provide, and thus the internet speed that users perceive from the site.

Here’s a video that explains it in a simplified manner.

Lebanon sees Blackberry as “Security Risk”

Lebanon will assess security concerns relating to the use of BlackBerry phones in the country, the acting head of the Telecoms Regulatory Authority said on Thursday. This came up after the arrest of several telecoms employees suspected of spying for Israel.

Overall, about 100 people have been arrested on suspicion of spying for the Israeli agency Mossad since April 2009, when the government launched a nationwide crackdown on alleged rings.

TRA would start talks with the BlackBerry’s Canadian maker, Research In Motion, over its concerns.

In a statement, RIM founder and co-chief executive Mike Lazaridis has said that allowing governments to monitor messages would imperil the firm’s ties with customers, including major corporations and law enforcement agencies.

Read more here.