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Libraries File Amicus Brief Supporting Net Neutrality

Last Updated on September 21, 2015, 6:49 pm ET

On September 21, 2015, ARL joined the American Library Association, Association of College and Research Libraries, and Chief Officers of State Library Agencies in filing an amicus brief in the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit supporting the FCC’s Open Internet Order establishing rules protecting net neutrality.

The brief focuses on the importance of net neutrality for libraries and their patrons, pointing out that

As broadband subscribers, providers of Internet access points to patrons, and providers of digital content and services, libraries rely on the open character of the Internet to achieve their missions of providing equitable access to information, enhancing education and promoting life-long learning, supporting democracy and informed citizenry, and protecting intellectual freedom.

The brief points out that the FCC’s rulemaking process provided ample notice of its proposed rules, as evidenced by the extensive participation of libraries and other participants in the process.

Additionally, the brief highlights the importance of net neutrality in fulfilling their missions and serving their patrons.  The brief points out that public libraries provide broadband Internet access to their patrons, including to the roughly one-third of the population without Internet access at home.

The brief then points to several areas where libraries serve as creators and providers of content and information, often serving as edge providers.  These examples include the National Library of Medicine (NLM) which provides trillions of bytes of data each day to users; the New York Public Library’s (NYPL) digitization of content from the 1939 New York World’s Fair and creation of a free app that is used in New York public K-12 schools; Ann Arbor Public library’s production and sharing of podcasts and online interviews; the Iowa City Public Library’s digital collection of local music; the Florida Memory Project which provides free online access to archival resources from the State Library and Archives of Florida; the content created by library patrons, such as at the music created by teens at the Albany Public Library; and the Digital Public Library of America’s (DPLA) creation of a portal that delivers millions of materials from archives, libraries, museums and cultural heritage institutions to students, teachers, scholars and the public.  The brief continues:

All of these examples—which range from medical information, historical documents, cultural materials including video and audio works, and educational resources—demonstrate a clear need for an open Internet. Without bright-line rules and more general policies to preserve the open character of the Internet, access to these services and content provided by libraries may be slowed and impeded, resulting in reduced access to information and frustration for users.

The brief then turns to the issue of paid prioritization, noting that without bright-line rules banning paid prioritization, libraries and other institutions serving the public interest may not be able to pay extra fees for enhanced transmission of their content.  Prioritization risks that network operators would give priority to entertainment or other commercial content over education, civic engagement, access to information or other services.

Additionally, the brief supports the General Conduct Rule as a necessary tool to ensure that the Internet remains open and neutral.  The General Conduct Rule protects against future harms, including those made possible by technological innovations and advances.  The brief that the General Conduct Rule is supported under Title II reclassification as well as the FCC’s Section 706 authority.  The brief notes that the factors set forth by the FCC’s General Conduct Rule are sufficient to provide notice as to what conduct is not permitted.

The full brief is available for download here.

 

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