Don’t Be Evil?

Four days ago I woke up to a Wall Street Journal article indicating that Google wanted to join forces with various telecomms to obtain a fast lane to their services.? Now, four days in Internet time is certainly akin to years in meatspace, to be sure.? But before I put my fingers to keyboard I decided to give the issue some careful thought.

My innitial impressions were reactionary and I was somewhat enraged.? I took it somewhat personally at first.? The reason being that a year ago, post-graduate school, I was denied a recommendation from a Google VP for a position in a technology fellowship they were hosting with various tech/Internet think-tanks across the nation because I “Did not share Google’s vision” on Net Neutrality.? The reason for this was because I had written several papers on the subject, which covered Net Neutrality policy across the gamut, from avoiding policy all together by using the precautionary principle, to my suggestions for appropriate regulatory options that would prevent destroying both corporate and garage scientists contributions and innovations to the medium.

I wanted to immediately throw Google under the bus.? This is the company that runs its own blog completely dedicated to public policy and focuses on the Net Neutrality issue a great deal.? The “Don’t be evil” company turning on its previous stance for its own benefit? I honestly wasn’t even surprised.

But here is the thing.? After giving the details of EdgeCaching a going over I don’t have a problem with this.? EdgeCaching, the technique Google is exploring using is a brilliant technology.? And it is something that should not be prevented by Net Neutrality policy.? It is something that should be embraced just like the possibility of fast lane tiers for users that want to pay more because they play time sensitive video games, or watch streaming high def movies.? Future technology and innovation should not be stymied by policy that is not future proof.? And anyone that joins me in a game of Gears of War 2, and gets pawned not by lack of skill, but because of incessant lag can appreciate this.

That being said, I still don’t find it appropriate for Google’s Richard Witt to try and swindle us on the fact that using EdgeCaching would not even possibly by-pass Net Neutrality principles.? Of course, we in the community still do not have a standard definition of Net Neutrality.? The versions of such definition alter depending on who you are talking to or citing.? But generally the definition includes some sort of case for everyone having the freedom or ability to connect equally.? And even these, freedom and ability, are two different things.? Freedom for one company to conduct services in the same way that another does them are certainly different than a company having the means to conduct business.? The point being is that when Witt explains that the implementation is “non-exclusive, meaning any other entity could employ similar arrangements,” does not mean that any other company could afford to go up against a deal penned with say AT&T and implement the same plan.

Now that may simply be capitalism.? It’s certainly not Google’s fault that they are successful and have the financial means to get certain arrangements and use advanced technology to their benefit.? But on the other hand wouldn’t allowing certainly technologies that give certain content providers a speed advantage over others by-pass our Net Neutrality principle of allowing each of us to connect equally?

The long and short of it is that the WSJ was probably somewhat off in their proposition.? But the longer I study Google’s pattern of behavior my face begins to facilitate the expression of two High Noon gun fighters, eyes focused, squinting in the sun, teeth clinched in cautious consideration of the next move.? Let us not forget this is the same company that blatantly mislead the FCC, and the public less than a year ago, with no real intention of placing a winning bid on the wireless spectrum auction for the sole purpose of forcing the spectrum to be open, thus allowing them the opportunity to benefit from the spectrum in the future without having to actually own it and incur any costs.

Google, Don’t Be Evil.

- nick