Contract for the Web - Draft 1: July 2019

July 23, 2019 - It's taken 8 months, but the first draft of the CONTRACT FOR THE WEB is finished and ready for your review. Created by Tim Berners Lee, the Internet Creator, and his World Wide Web Foundation, he regards this document as an important milestone. This draft is a working document: the first version of what will become the full contract, to be published later this year. "Just as the web itself is by and for everyone, the Contract for the Web should include the voices of as many people as possible. That's why we're asking you to complete this survey and share your feedback on the first draft," says José M. Alonso, Director of Strategy & Partnerships for the World Wide Web Foundation. "We've come a long way since the Contract for the Web was launched in November 2018. The level of detail included the first draft shows that the contract is not just a statement of ideals, but will offer a roadmap of responsibilities and provide clear policy guidelines for companies and governments as well as actions for citizens to participate actively and positively on the web." To provide feedback on this draft text, and to complete the public survey by September 8, 2019, Click Here. Available in Spanish.

Internet Creator Introduces New Technology to Decentralize the Web!

November 5, 2018 - CONTRACT FOR THE WEB. Today at the Web Summit 2018 in Lisbon, Portugal, Tim Berners-Lee - inventor of the World Wide Web and Web Foundation CEO Adrian Lovett launched the "Contract for the Web" - an initiative to ensure governments, companies and citizens around the world will help to protect the open web as a public good and a basic right for everyone. Tim was joined by his partner co-founder and CEO of Inrupt John Bruce at the Summit. Inrupt is backing an open-source project from Berners-Lee called Solid that's designed to let us keep control over own data instead of handing it over to companies like Facebook and Google. Accroding to the "Principles for a Contract for the Web" - "The web was designed to bring people together and make knowledge freely available. Everyone has a role to play to ensure the web serves humanity. By committing to the following principles, governments, companies and citizens around the world can help protect the open web as a public good and a basic right for everyone." The Contract Principles are available to read in Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Arabic. Click Here to Read the "Principles for a Contract for the Web" . . . Click Here to Read "Interest surges in Tim Berners-Lee's Inrupt, a startup out to remake the web."

September 29, 2018: This week, Tim Berners-Lee - inventor of the World Wide Web - will launch Inrupt, a startup that he has been building, in stealth mode, for the past nine months. Inrupt's mission is to decentralize the web and take back power from the forces that have profited from centralizing it. In other words, it’s game on for Facebook, Google, Amazon. For years now, Berners-Lee and other internet activists have been dreaming of a digital utopia where individuals control their own data and the internet remains free and open. But for Berners-Lee, the time for dreaming is over. Ever since revelations emerged that Facebook had allowed people’s data to be misused by political operatives, Berners-Lee has felt an imperative to get this digital idyll into the real world. Inrupt will be the first major commercial venture built off of Solid, a decentralized web platform he and others at MIT have spent years building. Exclusive: Tim Berners-Lee tells us his radical new plan to upend the World Wide Web - Click Here to Read the Full Story . . . Inrupt's Website.

Net Neutrality Is Officially Dead! Now What!

June 11, 2018: Today is the day that, after months of delays, the FCC’s repeal of net neutrality finally takes effect. But if you’re expecting broadband providers to suddenly feast on their customers and institute every now-legal impediment they can on free expression, I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed. What comes next isn’t internet hell but legal purgatory.

First, the technical aspect of things: Restoring Internet Freedom, the FCC rule that officially does away with 2015’s Open Internet Order, was proposed last April, finalized in November, passed in December, entered into the Federal Register in February, approved by the Office of Management and Budget in May — and today, finally takes effect.

But the official rulemaking process is only part of the story. The FCC have opened themselves up to lawsuits and legal challenges. Some allege improper conduct in the public comment portion of rulemaking; some allege the rule itself is technically incorrect; some tilt quixotically at undoing the rule in order to undermine its support in advance of the midterm elections.

Not only that, but many states have begun the process of establishing their own net neutrality rules, some even stronger than the 2015 ones being taken out of play. These will lead to numerous local conflicts, as the FCC claims its authority preempts that of states, while states claim the FCC has abdicated that authority by changing the statue under which it enforces the rules. (This is largely untested legal ground.) Source: Tech Crunch - Read the full story - Click Here.

How Net Neutrality Groups Are Pushing Back

Net neutrality groups are already working on ways to forestall the Pai order, either through state-level legislation or federal court challenges. Washington state and Oregon have already passed legislation. California passed a bill in its state Senate last month that would reestablish net neutrality and prohibit zero-rating programs in the state. Those are only three of the 29 states and over 65 bills that have been introduced since the Pai rules were presented in December. Governors in six states — including Hawaii, Rhode Island, and Vermont — have signed executive orders to ban any service provider from operating in those states if they refuse to abide by the 2015 rules. Sen. John Thune (R-SD), chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, has repeatedly touted his draft to make some kind of net neutrality regulations permanent, but he refuses to introduce it until he believes he has bipartisan support.

Most Internet Users Won’t Be Impacted For Months

Many of the state-level orders are on shaky legal ground. The FCC’s December order included a preemption clause that prohibited states from enacting their own net neutrality regulation. It’s only been two months since Washington state, the first to enact its own net neutrality legislation, passed its bill, and a lawsuit from the commission could be on the horizon. Still, experts say it’s unlikely carriers would directly violate the state rules for fear of future lawsuits where rules already exist. “If I were [an ISP], I might think twice [before] going around states and challenging widdly-niddly every rule that is enacted because that multiplies the chance that at least one court would disagree with them,” telecom lawyer Pantelis Michalopoulos said.

Most internet users won’t be impacted by the rules for months: an appeal to Pai’s orders is already pending in the DC circuit, and it will trickle through higher courts for months to come.

What You Can Do

Net neutrality isn’t over just yet. There’s still hope. There’s a motion in Congress right now that would force the Republican majority in the House to bring up a vote on the floor to rescind the Pai order and reinstate the 2015 rules. The motion has already passed the Senate, and the House version needs less than 50 more representatives to sign before it gets the majority necessary to force a vote and pass the bill.

The motion faces steep odds in Congress and even steeper odds once it reaches the president’s desk, but it gives voters a chance to force legislators to take sides on what’s still a deeply unpopular proposal. If you support net neutrality and your representative doesn’t, you can vote them out November and replace them with someone who does. Source: The Verge - Read the full story - Click Here.

The Senate has voted in favor of the CRA effort to save Net Neutrality! This is a huge victory, but we still have to get a majority of the House of Representatives on board before we officially save the internet. We deserve to celebrate, but we can’t lose momentum: The fate of the free and open internet now hinges on the vote in the House. Now’s the time to flood the congressional switchboard with more calls than it can handle. We must show every representative that protecting the internet from AT&T, Comcast and Verizon is a defining issue of our time. Tell the House to Save Net Neutrality! Click Here!

Senate Votes to Reinstate Net Neutrality!

May 16, 2018: The U.S. Senate today voted to reverse the Federal Communications Commission's repeal of net neutrality rules, with all members of the Democratic caucus and three Republicans voting in favor of net neutrality. Next stop! The U.S. House of Representatives.

The Senate approved a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution that would simply undo the FCC's December 2017 vote to deregulate the broadband industry. If the CRA is approved by the House and signed by President Trump, Internet service providers would have to continue following rules that prohibit blocking, throttling, and paid prioritization. Read the full report. Click here!

Red Alert for Net Neutrality!

Breaking News: On Wednesday, May 16, 2018, the U.S. Senate will vote on a resolution to save net neutrality. This is our best chance to stop the FCC from letting Internet providers like Comcast and Verizon ruin the Internet with throttling, censorship, and expensive new fees. Fight for the Future! Be a Change-Maker! Click Here!

Washington State Passes Law Protecting Net Neutrality

March 6, 2018 - There's now a law in the state of Washington that effectively reverses the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's repeal of 2015 net neutrality rules. Although Gov. Inslee said during the signing that Washington is “the first state in the nation to preserve the open internet,” it isn’t exactly the case, as the Associated Press mentioned. Oregon actually passed a similar state legislation protecting net neutrality earlier in 2018. The difference is that Washington’s law will put new requirements on ISPs, and that violations will be enforceable thanks to the state’s Consumer Protection Act.

Under the 2015 rules, no internet service provider (ISP) could discriminate against any online content to favor another, for example, by throttling or speeding up traffic. More states are determined to fight the FCC’s net neutrality repeal in one way or another. Similar measures are present on a federal level, with a Senate proposal that could reverse the repeal. Source: Futurism News Features

The Final Countdown to Net Neutrality Begins

As of February 22, the FCC published their repeal of net neutrality in the Federal Register, a government website that serves as the official ledger of federal agency rules. What this action means is, if opponents can't stop the repeal through legislation or lawsuits, it will go into effect in 60 days, around April 23, 2018. And, the free and open internet will be no more!

Starting on Feb. 22nd, Congress has 60 “session days” to pass a resolution reversing the FCC’s decision. As of last month, exactly 50 senators claimed to oppose the repeal, so even a single additional senator would be enough to give repeal opponents the majority in the Senate.

Now that the FCC’s decision is in the Federal Register, state attorneys general and advocacy groups can file lawsuits challenging it. A group of more than 20 attorneys general, including New York’s Eric Schneiderman, has already announced its plan to legally challenge the repeal, as have a number of public interest groups, including the National Hispanic Media Coalition, Public Knowledge, and Free Press. Source: Futurism News Features

New York and Montana Enact Their Own Net Neutrality Laws; Other States To Follow

On January 24, 2018, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signed an executive order protecting net neutrality in New York on Wednesday, making it the second state to issue such a rule after the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) decision to repeal the open internet regulations in December 2017.

Two days earlier, Montana’s governor, Steve Bullock, signed an executive order that would force internet service providers with state contracts to abide by net neutrality rules, even while the FCC has repealed those rules nationally. Montana became the first U.S. state to enact its own net neutrality law.

California, Nebraska, Washington, and Massachusetts are considering passing their own versions of net neutrality legislation. However, Republicans and FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said there are already laws in place that advocate for an open internet, calling net neutrality regulatory overreach.

Sources: The Hill Online Report . . . . . The Verge Report

One More Vote Needed to Pass Bill in Senate to Support "Resolution of Disapproval" to Kill FCC’s Net Neutrality Decision, Jan. 17, 2018

21 States Sue FCC; Senate Democrats Reach 50 Votes, One More Vote for Majority, Jan. 16, 2018

The Senate Push to Restore Net Neutrality Gains Momentum, Jan. 10, 2018

FCC Repeals Net Neutrality on December 14, 2017; Action Groups To File Lawsuit Against FCC; Ask Congress to Overturn Ruling

Our Dear Americans: We’re suing the FCC over its shameful decision to destroy the Net Neutrality rules. Chairman Pai and the two other Republican commissioners voted to destroy the open internet, ignoring the voices of tens of millions of people and handing control of the internet to companies like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon.

These companies are now free to carve the internet into fast and slow lanes. They could block or slow down any content, services or apps they choose — and even silence political speech they disagree with. This is terrifying for anyone using the internet to organize for justice and challenge the powerful.

We won’t stand for it.

Let us be clear: Ajit Pai will not have the last word on Net Neutrality. We intend to sue the FCC on the basis of its broken process, deeply flawed legal reasoning, willful rejection of evidence that contradicts its preordained conclusions, and absolute disregard for public input. We have a very strong case in court.

But we won’t stop there. We’re also urging lawmakers to overturn the agency’s decision and fighting back online and in the streets. And people are showing up — in red states and blue states, big cities and small towns. They’re discussing Net Neutrality in Teen Vogue, NASCAR fan forums, Black Lives Matter meetings and church on Sunday.

There’s no time to lose.

Chip in $10 (or whatever you can) to fuel the fight in the crucial months ahead. A generous donor will match all donations up to $30K by Dec. 31, so please give right away. The future of the internet hangs in the balance.

The people connected will never be defeated!

With thanks - Carrie, Candace, Dutch, Amy and the rest of the Free Press Action Fund team freepress.net

P.S. We can win this — but we need your help. Because we don’t take a cent from business, government or political parties, every dollar you give makes a huge difference. Thank you! The Free Press Action Fund is a nonpartisan organization fighting for your rights to connect and communicate. The Free Press Action Fund does not support or oppose any candidate for public office. Learn more at freepress.net.

CONGRESS CAN OVERRULE THE FCC VOTE. CLICK HERE TO LEARN HOW. The FCC just voted to gut net neutrality rules, letting Internet providers like Verizon and Comcast control what we can see and do online with new fees, throttling, and censorship. But we can still get Congress to stop this—by passing a "Resolution of Disapproval" to overturn the FCC vote.

"Here’s What Congress Needs to Do Now That The FCC Killed Net Neutrality," Free Press Action Fund, Dec. 13, 2017: HERE'S WHAT U.S. CONGRESS NEEDS TO DO - CLICK HERE

What's Next? Lawsuits Against the FCC

Dec. 14, 2017: 18 state attorneys general have petitioned Ajit Pai’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to cooperate with New York’s Eric Schneiderman in an investigation over fake net neutrality comments that used stolen American identities. Schneiderman, in a separate press release, also announced he would lead a multi-state net neutrality lawsuit.

The FCC lawsuit was announced shortly after the net neutrality vote that approved a repeal of regulations on broadband internet providers.

The FCC’s fraudulent comment problem has been an issue that’s been plaguing the net neutrality debate for some time. Earlier in December, Schneiderman called for the net neutrality vote to be delayed due to what he has called “identity theft on a massive scale.” FCC commissioner Migon Clyburn even referenced the issue in her dissenting vote on Thursday, citing “the FCC’s refusal to cooperate with state attorney general investigations.” (Click Headline for more).

The Movement to Stop Chairman Pai from Breaking the Internet, Nov. 29, 2017 - FCC will vote whether to delete net neutrality on December 14, 2017

Millions of people have gotten involved in the Net Neutrality fight since word of FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s awful plan broke through in a big way last Tuesday, Nov. 17th.

#NetNeutrality trended globally on Twitter that day and was the top-trending hashtag in the United States. Redditors representing a dizzying range of political philosophies and subcultures spoke out: In fact, the most popular post in the NASCAR group’s entire history is about the need to save the open internet.

People are waking up the social-media outcry with all kinds of activism. Since last Tuesday, people have made over 500,000 calls to Congress to urge lawmakers to condemn Pai’s plan.

In fact, Capitol Hill staffers are feeling so besieged that a few have reached out and asked us to make the calls stop.

That means the pressure is working. Need some proof? On Saturday, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine became the first GOP senator to publicly oppose Pai’s proposal, joining scores of Democratic leaders who have spoken out over the last few months.

Since Pai was once a Verizon lawyer — and is, let’s face it, still working for the company — people are organizing protests outside corporate-owned Verizon stores all across the country.

As of today there are 600 protests in the works in all 50 states in cities including Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Des Moines, Miami, New York City, Salt Lake City, San Francisco and Wichita. We’re working with our Team Internet partners Demand Progress and Fight for the Future to give people the tools they need to recruit fellow activists and highlight their message to passersby.

Though the Verizon protests will take place on Dec. 7, folks in Los Angeles didn’t want to wait until then to speak out: Dozens of activists demonstrated outside the federal building in the city’s Westwood neighborhood on Nov. 28.

We’re also teaming up with our partners in the Voices for Internet Freedom Coalition — which fights for the digital rights of communities of color — to present a Net Neutrality Wake-Up Call Rally outside the FCC the morning of the big vote (Dec. 14, 2017). Activists, artists, musicians, lawmakers, former FCC commissioners and others who are committed to fighting for both Net Neutrality and racial justice will be there.

All of this activity comes on the heels of an epic FCC comment period in which more than 20 million people weighed in on Chairman Pai’s Net Neutrality-killing plan. A whopping 98.5 percent of individual comments support keeping the open-internet rules.

Pai has ridiculed all of this activism as “fear-mongering and hysteria” — and even maligned celebrities like Alyssa Milano, Cher and Mark Ruffalo for speaking out.

We know the truth: People like you are making a difference.

The movement in 2014–15 to get real Net Neutrality was huge (yuuge, as a vile orange tyrant might say). But this moment we’re in right now is smashing all records. In all the years we’ve spent fighting to protect the open internet, we’ve never seen anything like it.

So don’t give up, because this fight isn’t over. Go to a Verizon protest on Dec. 7; if you’re on the East Coast, see if you can make it to D.C. for the big rally on Dec. 14.

Keep fighting like hell to save the internet you love. Source: FREE-PRESS.NET

Trump's FCC Announces Plan to Gut Open Internet Protections and End Net Neutrality, April 26, 2017

FreePress.net reports that FCC Chairman Ajit Pai officially kicked off his attack on Net Neutrality with a speech full of lies. Ajit Pai is a former Verizon lawyer now in a prime position to keep his telecom buddies rich by rolling back rules designed to protect us from their greed. His argument is completely transparent, and his motives are clear: Internet freedom in the era of Pai and Trump is for sale to the highest bidder.

"Pai is lying about investment and wooing the right-wing fringe to continue his long-standing war on internet freedom. His willingness to trot out alternative facts and recycle long-debunked industry talking points should worry anyone who cares about the free and open internet. There aren’t many details available yet on his proposal, but his intent is clear: to destroy the internet as we know it and give even more gatekeeper power to a few huge companies like AT&T, Comcast and Verizo," says Free Press President and CEO Craig Aaron.

FCC Helps AT&T and Verizon Charge More by Ending Broadband Price Caps, Ars Technica, April 20, 2017

Business Internet price caps eliminated even when customers have only one choice. The Federal Communications Commission today voted to eliminate price caps in much of the business broadband market by imposing a new standard that deems certain local markets competitive even when there's only one broadband provider.

"What this order does is open the door to immediate price hikes for small business broadband service in rural areas and hundreds of communities across the country," FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, a Democrat, said in a detailed dissent. "Cash-strapped hospitals, schools, libraries, and police departments will pay even more for vital connectivity."

Sir Tim Berners-Lee: Internet Creator

Sir Tim Berners-Lee, a British computer scientist, created what he called the “world wide web” while working at CERN – a research labratory. Berners-Lee's revolutionary creation was first detailed in a March 12, 1989, memo—is now celebrated as Internaut Day on Aug. 23. Estimates are that 3.4 billion people are now connected to the global internet or have access to it. Sir Tim could have been the richest man ever, but instead, he choose to give the internet to the world – FREE! Now, it’s up to ALL of us to protect and enhance it.

Berners-Lee is the director of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), the organization founded in 1994 that develops and maintains the technical specifications on which the web is based. He also founded the World Wide Web Foundation, launched in 2009 to further the use of the web for the betterment of humanity. He deserves our support to keep the internet open and free.

Berners-Lee has remained a powerful force in ensuring that the web remains a free and open platform that anyone can use it how they wish. He has also been an outspoken advocate for net neutrality, the concept that internet service providers should treat all data on the internet equally.

The Web Belongs to ALL of Us!
Take action to protect and enhance it!

Trump and GOP Destroyed Internet Privacy Protections in April 2017

On March 28, 2017, the U.S. House of Representatives overturned the FCC’s landmark broadband rule and gave companies like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon free rein to spy on customers and sell their private information. Six days later, on April 3, President Trump signed the resolution into law, and repealed protections requiring internet service providers (ISP) to get your permission before collecting and sharing data.

ISP’s can sell your entire web browsing history to literally anyone without your permission: including, your app usage, geolocation, financial and medical info, your children’s info, your social security number, even the contents of your emails. Privacy advocates, consumer groups and the tech community are all attacking the decision. More than 15,000 calls against the measure poured into the Capitol in the two days before the House vote.

NOW, Trump Wants FCC to End Net Neutrality

FreePress.net reports that, in a meeting with phone and cable-industry lobbyists, President Trump’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman, Ajit Pai, unveiled his plan to end Net Neutrality and destroy the open internet. He is not friendly to net neutrality. And, he plans to move on it fast – the process could begin as early as late April 2017.

The Trump administration is doing everything in its power to clamp down on dissent, and give the big companies (e.g., AT&T, Comcast, Verizon, Time Warner) absolute control over internet services and programming to the consumer’s misfortune. This means higher prices for limited services to boost corporate profits. They are not looking out for us, their customers.

The open internet has fostered unprecedented creativity, innovation and access to knowledge, and to other kinds of social, economic, cultural, and political opportunities across the globe. It allows us to organize and rally against oppression and suppression, and to promote peace and goodwill across the planet. Net Neutrality is a critical part of our lives. We cannot lose Net Neutrality. Save the Internet! Defend your rights to connect and communicate. Take action now. Join the battle.

Do you want to pay higher prices to a monopoly for limited services to boost corporate profits?

Nonprofits Fighting "For" Net Neutrality

Let Your Voice Be Heard!
The Web Belongs to ALL of Us!

Save The Internet: Become knowledgeable about the subject. Read alternative / independent news sources. Watch You Tube videos.

Defend The Net: Check out nonprofits working in this area. Join one or more nonprofits. Donate financial support.

Protect The Net: Email your representatives in Congress. Tell them: SAVE THE INTERNET. PROTECT NET NEUTRALITY.

Spread The Word: Share this page by email with your friends, post this link on Facebook, Meetup Groups and social media.

Take Action: Join a Rally or Protest in your area, or online.

Spiritual Solution: Send the energy of Love to President Donald Trump and FCC Chairman Pai. The power of love is the most powerful force in the universe. Learn to use it for your own transformation and the transformation of the world. It’s the transformation of the human collective consciousness that will bring about a non-violent, bloodless revolution of love and change. Stay in the flow of the transformational energies flooding the planet. Wake up to the power of your heart, for the fifth dimension (5D) is a multi-dimensional love-based lifestyle, and that’s where we are headed. Check out the many articles BlissfulVisions.com has to help you achieve this.

"If you think you are too small to make a difference,
you haven't been in bed with a mosquito." -- Anita Roddick

PLEASE SHARE THIS