Top 10 Internet Moments of 2009

[Commentary] More than a decade ago, President Clinton pledged that every person in America would soon be able to go online "to order up every movie ever produced or every symphony ever created in a minute's time." Well, we're already well into the next millennium and less than one out of every 10 Americans has a connection capable of those speeds. And it's not just the speed of our connection that's fallen behind. When we can get online in the United States, a free and open Internet is no longer guaranteed. 2009 was a year when the openness of the Internet was debated every where from Obama's White House to your house. As all media -- including TV, radio, newspapers and books -- converge via a digital connection, the controversial issue of who ultimately controls your clicks has taken center stage. Much will be decided in 2010, and 2009 helped set the stage.

The Top 10 Open Internet Moments of 2009 (in no particular order):

• Stimulus Plan Embraces Access and Openness
• The FCC Pushes for Net Neutrality
• Whose 'Internet Freedom' Is it?
• Twitter Empowers Protesters. DPI Endangers Them.
• Obama White House Goes 2.0
• The Breaching of the Walled Garden
• Open Source Operating Systems May Get Lost in the Cloud
• A New Battle for Old Spectrum
• Internet Video vs. the Cable Guy
• National Broadband Plan: Under Construction