Network neutrality: who cares?

[Commentary] Do you care about or even understand the issue of network neutrality?

I bet that for most people the answer is first net what? And then no. But here's another question -- if your broadband provider started throttling back the speed at which you could use some services -- say a Skype video call, or a BBC iPlayer stream - would you care then? On March 16, the culture minister Ed Vaizey will gather figures from across the broadband and media industries to discuss network neutrality -- and whether there is a role for the regulators. The big issue here is whether a principle sacred to Internet pioneers -- that all traffic over the network is equal -- is in danger of being watered down and, if so, whether something needs to be done.