Net Neutrality: What Does It Mean for Your Budget?

With net neutrality, the “roads” of the Internet are open and Internet providers have to allow equal access to every byte of data streaming through them regardless of where it comes from or what that byte of data does. At least, that’s how it has always been. Recent changes made at the federal level are starting to erode that away.

In the case of Comcast V. Netflix, though, Comcast was slowing down the delivery of Netflix streaming media to thousands and thousands of users in an attempt to get Comcast customers to their own steaming media service instead (we’re guessing; Comcast has never said so on the record).

Over the weekend, the two giants in media/internet came to an agreement and Netflix has agreed to pay an extra amount to have direct access to Comcast’s internet/data lines and, in return, Comcast won’t be able to slow the service down.

So what does this mean for you?

In terms of your everyday life right now, not much is going to change. You’ll still get your cable service and internet service and you probably won’t even notice a difference, save for Netflix not needing to buffer so much or so often. We’re willing to bet you’ll probably see an uptick in your Netflix subscription cost in the next few months (Netflix has to come up with the money for this payment somehow) but hopefully it won’t be too egregious.

In terms of precedent, though, and your future budget, it could wreak some havoc.

What this agreement does is set the precedent that Comcast can use this same tactic or require this same type of fee from other websites and web services.  It also sets a precedent to allow other internet providers to do the same thing. So, within a couple of years, all of that stuff that you’re used to getting for free or for just a few bucks a month? It could start costing quite a bit. Before long, your budget could be in chaos.

So here’s what you do now, particularly if you are one of the few who cares deeply about Net Neutrality and the precedent the Comcast V. Netflix settlement sets:

Switch your Internet provider

This could be a little tricky, especially if you want to keep watching regular network television and live in a place like Portland, where Comcast has a contract guaranteeing them market exclusivity (it’s true: in Portland, Oregon the only cable provider available is Comcast—at least for a few more years). If you live in an area like this, you’ll most likely need to switch from using one catch-all company like Comcast to several different companies.

At first glance, this seems like a burden but think of it this way—there are also more ways to save. If you’re not tied to one service, you can hunt down coupon codes for your internet/phone/cable service providers to help cut costs. For example, you can use the Verizon code to watch your favorite show and other codes for saving on phone services.

It’s easy to get caught up in the thinking that “well it won’t change my life that much so I don’t need to do anything.” We take free internet for granted. That’ll go out the window when you have to take out loans to cover the costs of all of the different subscriptions you have to buy, just to keep reading the same things you’re getting now for free. So start looking for savings now. Your budget will thank you for it later.