Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak says the net neutrality decision is a ‘victory for the people’
There was a familiar face in attendance during today’s historic FCC net neutrality vote in Washington, D.C. – Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak.
And after the 3-2 vote that will put in place regulations for broadband providers and place restrictions on practices like speed throttling and paid Internet fast lanes, Wozniak spoke to Bloomberg:
“To me, more than anything else, this is a victory for the people, the consumers, the average Joes, against the suppliers who have all of the power and the wealth and make decisions for them and they feel hopeless and helpless. And here 4 million of us signed petitions. It’s an indication that the people can sometimes win. We’ve had a lot of defeats over the years, but once in a while we get a win.”
Wozniak previously attended a 2010 FCC meeting regarding net neutrality and said he felt compelled to attend today’s vote.
The proposal was strongly opposed by a number of ISPs and carriers like Verizon and AT&T. But Wozniak believes that the ruling will help ensure an open and free Internet and make it easier for budding entrepreneurs to start their own company:
“I think that it’s a big, positive step. I think that the other side is also for an open, free Internet in terms of net neutrality. The decision today goes a lot further than net neutrality. Title II regulation means oversight of bad behavior–not meddling, not controlling things, not making decisions, but looking for bad behavior. And there could be a lot of things that are illegal, that are unconstitutional and behind-the-scenes in a lot of these big ISPs and I think a lot of people don’t trust them that much. To me, more than anything else, this is a victory for the people, the consumers, the average Joes, against the suppliers who have all of the power and the wealth and make decisions for them and they feel hopeless and helpless. And here 4 million of us signed petitions. It’s an indication that the people can sometimes win. We’ve had a lot of defeats over the years, but once in a while we get a win.”
Wozniak designed both the Apple I and Apple II computers that helped turn the company into a powerhouse in the early days of the home computing era.
He will be portrayed by comedian Seth Rogen in the upcoming “Steve Jobs” film, which will hit theaters on Oct. 9 of this year. Michael Fassbender will play Jobs.
For other news today, see: Fever lets you tap and hold to turn up the heat, China removes Apple from approved government purchase lists, and Android smartphone profits fall to a new low as Apple’s iOS dominates.
