Fight for the Future Turns to EU

Fresh from celebrating a U.S. federal appeals court's decision to uphold the FCC's Open Internet order, Fight for the Future, a digital rights group that advocated, and protested, in support of the FCC, is moving its focus to the European Union with plans for a 'net slowdown event.

The group said it has created www.savenetneutrality.eu and plans on calling for an EU Slowdown on June 28, similar to the Web protests for strong Title II-based net neutrality rules and the protests against the SOPA/PIPA legislation several years ago. 

"We are providing a line of code that websites, blogs, and Tumblr users can use to protest, with symbolic “slow loading” icons (in the style of the EU flag!) that drive comments to BEREC, the EU regulator that will decide net neutrality," said a spokesperson for the group.

"In the US, campaigns like this one were instrumental in driving the 3.7 million comments that paved the way to victory. Now, the groups behind that win are helping to bring the same tactics to Europe," he said. 

The Body of European Regulators of Electronic Communications (BEREC) is currently considering their own net neutrality rules, the group points out, and it sees loopholes that need closing before any final ruling is issued.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.