Kenneth C. Laudon,Jane P. Laudon Management Information System 12th Edition pdf

Part Two

Information Technology Infrastructure

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1.

What is network neutrality? Why has the Internet

operated under net neutrality up to this point in

time?

2.

Who’s in favor of net neutrality? Who’s opposed?

Why?

3.

What would be the impact on individual users,

businesses, and government if Internet providers

switched to a tiered service model?

4.

Are you in favor of legislation enforcing network

neutrality? Why or why not?

And with enough options for Internet access,

regulation would not be essential for promoting net

neutrality. Dissatisfied consumers could simply

switch to providers who enforce net neutrality and

allow unlimited Internet use.

Since the Comcast ruling was overturned, FCC

efforts to support net neutrality have been in a

holding pattern as it searches for some means of

regulating broadband Internet service within the

constraints of current law and current court rulings.

One proposal is to reclassify broadband Internet

transmission as a telecommunications service so the

FCC could apply decades-old regulations for

traditional telephone networks.

In August 2010, Verizon and Google issued a policy

statement proposing that regulators enforce net

1.

Visit the Web site of the Open Internet Coalition

and select five member organizations. Then visit

the Web site of each of these organizations or surf

the Web to find out more information about each.

Write a short essay explaining why each organiza-

tion is in favor of network neutrality.

2.

Calculate how much bandwidth you consume

when using the Internet every day. How many 

e-mails do you send daily and what is the size of

each? (Your e-mail program may have e-mail file

size information.) How many music and video

clips do you download daily and what is the size of

each? If you view YouTube often, surf the Web to

find out the size of a typical YouTube file. Add up

the number of e-mail, audio, and video files you

transmit or receive on a typical day.

neutrality on wired connections, but not on wireless

networks, which are becoming the dominant Internet

platform. The proposal was an effort to define some

sort of middle ground that would safeguard net neu-

trality while giving carriers the flexibility they needed

to manage their networks and generate revenue from

them. None of the major players in the net neutrality

debate showed support and both sides remain dug in. 

Sources:

Joe Nocera, “The Struggle for What We Already Have,”

The New York Times

, September 4, 2010; Claire Cain Miller, “Web

Plan is Dividing Companies,” 

The New York Times

, August 11,

2010; Wayne Rash, “Net Neutrality Looks Dead in the Clutches of

Congress,” 

eWeek

, June 13 2010; Amy Schatz and Spencer E. Ante,

“FCC Web Rules Create Pushback,” 

The Wall Street Journal

, May 6,

2010; Amy Schatz, “New U.S. Push to Regulate Internet Access,”

The Wall Street Journal

, May 5, 2010;  and Joanie Wexler: “Net

Neutrality: Can We Find Common Ground?” 

Network World

, April

1, 2009.

C A S E   S T U D Y   Q U E S T I O N S

M I S   I N   A C T I O N

Chapter 7

Telecommunications, the Internet, and Wireless Technology

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be allocated to different machines. Figure 7-10 illustrates one way that these

services can be arranged in a multitiered client/server architecture.

E-mail

enables messages to be exchanged from computer to computer, with

capabilities for routing messages to multiple recipients, forwarding messages,

and attaching text documents or multimedia files to messages. Although some

organizations operate their own internal electronic mail systems, most e-mail

today is sent through the Internet. The costs of e-mail is far lower than equiva-

lent voice, postal, or overnight delivery costs, making the Internet a very inex-

pensive and rapid communications medium. Most e-mail messages arrive

anywhere in the world in a matter of seconds.

Nearly 90 percent of U.S. workplaces have employees communicating

interactively using 

chat

or instant messaging tools. Chatting enables two or

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Part Two

Information Technology Infrastructure

more people who are simultaneously connected to the Internet to hold live,

interactive conversations. Chat systems now support voice and video chat as

well as written conversations. Many online retail businesses offer chat services

on their Web sites to attract visitors, to encourage repeat purchases, and to

improve customer service.