Tom Morello, Amanda Palmer, Speedy Ortiz, Kimya Dawson, and more have signed an open letter calling for the restoration of net neutrality, stressing the benefits of an open internet for artists.
Net neutrality, as initially codified during the Obama administration in 2015, broadly established regulations for a more open, accessible internet: The rules ensured that internet providers couldn’t do things like restrict access to certain content, slow or accelerate connection speeds, or hamstring connectivity for customers who didn’t pay a premium fee.
Those rules were scrapped during the Trump administration, but last October, the Federal Communications Commission voted to move forward with a proposal to restore them. The new letter — organized by Demand Progress and Fight for the Future — comes one day before the FCC’s deadline to submit public comments on the proposal (an actual vote is set to take place later this year).
While net neutrality rules affect all internet users, artists have long been among the most vocal proponents of these regulations, seeing them as a way to counterbalance corporate dominance in the intertwined worlds of arts and tech. The new open letter states that restoring net neutrality protections is one of many policy changes “needed to protect art and give power back to artists.”
In explaining the decision to revisit net neutrality, FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel noted the way the Covid-19 pandemic underscored the need for reliable and fair internet access, especially for things like education. The Demand Progress/Fight for the Future letter echoes this sentiment for artists, noting how the pandemic forced many to “turn to livestreams, ebooks, and other methods of generating online income.
Without net neutrality protections, the letter argues, it would only be “a matter of time” until telecom companies “start trying to charge for online searches that artists depend on, or build pay-to-play fast lanes only affordable” to internet giants like Google, Amazon, Spotify, and Instagram.
“That will only entrench the monopoly power of these giants, making it nearly impossible for artists to find or build alternatives with more just and transparent business practices,” the letter states. “Artists are not fools. We know that if Big Telecom giants squeeze access fees from Big Tech companies, these monopolies will put corporate profits before struggling artists and pass those costs along to us. And smaller, more independent platforms that actually cater to artists’ needs could shut down entirely.”
Along with Morello, Dawson, Ortiz, and Palmer, the letter was signed by Deerhoof, Molly Crabapple, Julia Holter, Xenia Rubinos, Eve 6, DIIV, Stephen Fry, Cory Doctorow, Algiers, Jeff Rosenstock, Sammus, Big Joanie, Spencer Tweedy, and Neil Gaiman. The letter has more than 275 signers.
Joey La Neve DeFrancesco, a campaigner at Demand Progress, as well as a musician (Downtown Boys, La Neve), said in a statement, “Giant corporations already hold so much power over the digital music landscape that it’s become virtually impossible for most artists to make a sustainable living. Without net neutrality, these companies can and will sap even more resources out of our industry. For instance, Verizon and AT&T could cut deals with the big record labels for their artists’ music to load faster than music from independent artists, or from artists they deem too politically controversial. We cannot allow these corporations to take even more control over our art and livelihoods.”
