Law sought to protect Web access

Law sought to protect Web access - Technology - International Herald Tribune: "Internet network operators in the United States would be prohibited from charging companies for faster delivery of their content to consumers or favoring some content providers over others under a proposal from a Senate Democrat.

The senator, Ron Wyden of Oregon, said in advance of his bill's introduction Thursday that he wanted to ease growing fears that open Internet access could be blocked or compromised by the Bell phone carriers or cable operators, possibly creating tiers of service for delivering content to consumers, much the way the post office charges more for overnight mail delivery than for regular delivery.

Consumer groups and Internet companies like Google and Amazon contend that any move by the network operators to impose fees for premium delivery service would harm Web sites unwilling to pay for faster delivery."