I'm getting a headache from this discussion. I feel there is a lot of misinformation on both sides of the discussion.
First off, Net Neutrality on its most fundamental level is about ensuring that whatever content you want on the internet isn't slowed down because a company didn't pay the ISP to provide a 'fast lane' for them. In this sense, that means if person A makes a request to watch some film on some startup streaming service does not get delayed and pushed to the side because person B decides they want to watch Netflix because Netflix paid the ISP for higher priority.
This is fundamentally against what the Internet is. The internet is based off of what is known as 'Time-sharing'. Think of the it this way, the internet is a highway. Let us say, in this scenario we are using a 2 lane highway, one direction for either way.
In the example I provide below the house is a movie that is being streamed.
I'm building a house and most of the time, all the materials may not fit into one truck, so multiple trips must be made before I get all the material to build the house, this is good because the person back at the building site may construct the house and move through the materials while the driver gets more (i.e. you are watching the movie).
Let's say that at the building supply store driver A (startup up consumer) is not allowed to leave because driver B (Netflix consumer) gets the right of way even if driver A is ready to go with the next shipment. This is because driver B paid to have the high availability to leave whenever they want.
Basically what Net Neutrality is trying to stop is allowing ISPs to look at who is making a request and what they are requesting but DELAYING them service because someone else made a request, let's say after the first person, for a company that PAID the ISP to get their content to the consumer faster.
This does not promote the internet. This HURTS the internet and actually creates an intranet. Why would I get a streaming service if my service is DELAYED because my service can't pay the ISP? That means I would have to wait LONGER before I can consume my content.
Net Neutrality is NOT based on speeds but PRIORITY. The internet was not based on giving people better priority because of their pocket books. The internet is based on TIME-SHARING. Ensuring this Time-Sharing makes ISPs competitive to offer FASTER connections, not the deals they strike to prioritize your internet experience.
When they say a fast lane and a slow lane is happening is not based on your Mbps, Kbps or even Gbps. What they are saying, is that other people will get to jump the line because your content is not a PRIORITY.
What this means is that COMPANIES pay for this PRIORITY to the ISPs and guess who the company have to pass that cost off to? You the consumers! This means that ISPs continue to make unbelievable profit margins.
That hurts start ups, small businesses and even medium size businesses. They are saying finding new ideas or discovering better businesses are not important and that large corporations are always the best.
People who say that this is a way for government to control prices are absolutely wrong. Net Neutrality is about PRIORITY of data.*
Net Neutrality can help increase competition by making government letting more utility companies access the telephone poles and the public and private lands that water, electric and gas lines are anyways. Cutting those guys out of the equation will increase availability to lay down the lines need for new ISPs. This will in turn lower costs due to more competition. Right now ISPs must go through utility companies to lay their lines down. That can double the costs for an ISP.*
By allowing more access to these utilities area, ISPs will be more inclined to upgrade their lines to increase speed as the barrier to entries are lowered for other ISPs to come in and offer higher speeds.*
People who say Net Neutrality gives the government more power to control the Internet are right. Though why regulately when all companies need is access to lay the lines down?*
Anyone who says vote with your wallet if you don't like the speeds / current providers are naive. I say this because it has been proven that when people, businesses and even countries hurt when there is NO internet.*
So if someone only has one choice in provider, they are literally asking for a lower quality of life and less potential earnings from not having the Internet. You can't say that that another ISP can just come in, they can't because let's say for a given community it costs a company $100,000 for the lines, well to rent the space from utility companies already there, the new ISP can pay up to $200,000 to just rent that place for their lines.*
Source for this last bit:*
http://www.wired.com/2013/07/we-nee...government-for-dismal-broadband-competition/*
Net Neutrality is a good thing. ISP should not give priority access to content because a company decides to pay them off.
TLDR; Net Neutrality stops ISPs from prioritizing data on the Internet because a company pays for higher priority which actually will create an intranet and harm America. The company paying the ISP will in turn pass the costs off onto its consumers and limiting their choices by harming consumer experiences with other companies.
Edit: Also, your local governments right now are hurting your competition for more ISPs due to these licensing agreements with the other utility companies.