Could Net Neutrality Rules Impact Travel Agents Online?

Some travel agents and small business advocates are growing concerned that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) might repeal “net neutrality” rules in a vote on Thursday, freeing up internet service providers (ISPs) to alter how users access the World Wide Web, and how much they pay for it.

Currently, FCC rules bar internet providers from deliberately speeding up or slowing down traffic to or from specific websites and apps – treating all users and content providers equally in terms of their access. Under new rules proposed by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, internet providers conceivably could manipulate traffic speeds based on who was willing to pay for priority traffic.

It is an internet axiom that the longer it takes for a website to load, the faster a site visitor will move on. For example, Google research suggests 53 percent of visitors to a mobile web site will leave after three seconds. Thus, the ISPs might find it commercially viable to establish a “fast lane” for those willing to pay more, or even block access to certain sites to users not willing to pay a premium.

“This should be a concern for all small businesses, like travel agencies, who rely on social media. This could hurt,” said Jacob Marek, founder and chief explorer, IntroverTravels, in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. “The danger is, for so many of us who use Facebook and other social media sites to market our businesses, we might find ourselves paying more for bundles of packages, or alternatively having slower access.”

“Travel agents are complaining that the large OTAs are coming in with their big budgets and ad spend and dominating the space. And Facebook already told you that only 3-5 percent of your followers are receiving your posts organically. If you think that is bad now, how does a little agent compete with Expedia or Priceline if there are no net neutrality rules and the OTAs can pay to play at a different level?”

ISPs claim a repeal would lead to a better variety of services and more innovation. On Nov. 21, Comcast President and CEO David N. Watson blogged that his company “does not and will not block, throttle, or discriminate against lawful content,” but did not count out the types of premium service offerings many small firms fear.

The concept of repealing net neutrality has been hotly debated for years as the telecommunications industry has fought to make the internet more of a commercial business, and less of a public utility. In June 2016, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld the current net neutrality rules providing more consumer protections.

Reactions to the proposed repeal
This year, under a new administration, the FCC reopened the debate and included a public comment period where it received about 20 million submissions. Now, the FCC is scheduled to meet this week to possibly vote on the repeal, though several critics have spoken up, asking the commission to review public comments for potential identity theft.

For example, the Pew Research Center found that 57 percent of comments used temporary or duplicate email addresses, a telltale sign they may have been fake.

About two dozen Democratic senators, New York’s attorney general, and Jessica Rosenworcel, one of two current Democratic FCC commissioners, have called for the Dec. 14 vote to be delayed pending an investigation of the possible fake submissions.

Travel Market Report emailed the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), Sabre and Amadeus about whether they had taken a position on the issue. The NFIB and Amadeus did not respond at all. Sabre confirmed that it had not filed any comments with the FCC regarding net neutrality, but did not offer any further comments by press time.

The American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) has not issued a position on the potential repeal of net neutrality rules.

However, Molly Day, vice president of public affairs at the National Small Business Association (NSBA), said her organization’s board voted to oppose the repeal of net neutrality rules on Friday, Dec. 1, but NSBA had not issued a statement at press time.

Future would be uncertain
Experts are struggling to forecast what a more commercial internet would look like for both consumers and businesses. Over the summer, the San Diego Tribune conducted an online poll about internet service and costs. It found that in San Diego, Spectrum customers pay a median price of $73.50 a month for a median download speed of 65 megabits per second (Mbps), while Cox customers pay $75 a month for a median speed of 31 Mbps. (All of the responses were self reported.)

Urban markets tend to have more options (including public Wi-Fi) for internet users, and thus more competition. But in many regions, especially rural areas, there is little to no internet service competition, and many critics of a repeal believe rates would increase dramatically, hurting small business profit margins.