Thoughts on Net Neutrality Repeal & Digital Marketing

[PatrickDelehanty]

Hey everyone

I was having a discussion with a friend and colleague recently regarding the repeal of net neutrality and what it would mean for marketers and website owners. I wanted to reach out to the community and get your thoughts on what you foresee this FCC decision meaning for your efforts and if your plans have changed at all.

Obviously, there are appeals happening and any changes are said to be subtle and gradual, but I'd still like to see what is on everyone's mind at this time should the repeal stick.

Excited for the conversation!

[AlfredGoldberg]

EGOL, you raise some really thought-provoking possibilities here. Much like how viewers are annoyed when a long commercial interrupts their favourite show - I'm not thinking that these new kinds of ads on the Internet will be any more attuned to user intent. I guess we will have to wait and see what happens and start developing solutions to these new dynamics of search and visibility.

[EGOL]

What discernible differences will there be between ads and organic content?

I believe that your traffic sources will determine how this hits you.  If all of the ISPs give all subscribers access to Google then I don't think my traffic will suffer very much - because Google is where most of my traffic comes from.

However, if most of your traffic comes through direct visits, then you will need to think hard about how to continue attracting a steady flow of new fans - if they are not coming from Google.  Then you will need to resort to an accelerated and exposure targeted ad spend.

A very new type of ad will probably develop.  That will be ads that appear between the websites that you visit much like the commercials that you now see between the programs that you watch on television.  The ISPs might also slap their own ads between your pageviews.   This could upset the balance between ads as a traffic source and organic search.

The ISPs might all place a bar across the bottom of the screen.  This will offer you search, weather, shopping, reference, and utilities - all pointing at sites who pay or share revenue for this exposure.  Advertising gets clicked up another notch.

[AlfredGoldberg]

Patrick, thank you for starting this conversation. It has also heavily weighed on my mind. Besides barriers to entry for smaller websites, publishers, and content producers, I'm also trying to come up with some examples of how SEO itself is going to be affected. How will the repeal change SERPs? If the Internet is going to be increasingly pay-to-play, what happens to keyword difficulty, rankings? What discernible differences will there be between ads and organic content?

I know it’s early days, and since we haven’t experienced this before, there’s no formula for achieving SEO success post-repeal.

What are the community’s thoughts on this?

[EGOL]

One thing that I didn't address is my plans...

Right now, I see the cost of all of the labor that was put into my website plus its future income stream at risk.  If ISPs start charging us, or throttling us, or selling access to our content then a huge transfer of wealth and value is going to occur.

I was thinking, even at my old age, of starting a new project.  But, I am not so excited about that now that such unpredictable and potentially damaging changes might occur.

[PatrickDelehanty]

Hey EGOL

The cable and internet comparison is actually a great way of looking at this. I'm going to borrow this for our office download as well. The potential back and forth on pricing from the consumer / publisher perspective is what I'm concerned about. Put the professional aspect of this being my job aside, the idea that people who can't afford access to even the most basic need content or information is something that I find absolutely heartbreaking should this repeal stick.

Oooh, I definitely have opinions on Ajit's videos, but that's a conversation for another time and platform.

Thanks as always for your response!
P

[EGOL]

Yep.  We watched that WBF it at my office when it was new.  It was good to be reminded of it again.  I watched it a second time.  Thanks!

[PatrickDelehanty]

Hey Roberto

This is a great point about the barriers to entry for startups and new businesses. I also really like your points about most funding vs most value, that's definitely a huge consideration here and I think one that a lot of people haven't really considered (myself included) about the repercussions of this repeal.

You did great with your points - there is no right or wrong, just wanted the community insights and get the discussion going! Thanks for your thoughtful response!
P

[PatrickDelehanty]

Hey Rand

Didn't even see you posted this! Thanks for the insights, this was all great stuff, man! Sending it to our office now for a quick digest.

Thanks again,
P

[randfish]

Hey Patrick - good question, because I think this will have a dramatic, mostly negative, definitely industry-shaking-up effect on web access and how web marketing will have to be done. I covered my thoughts here: https://moz.com/blog/net-neutrality-seo-whiteboard-friday

[EGOL]

I look at cable and satellite television as a comparison.

The companies who provide households and businesses access to the content are similar to the ISPs of the internet space.  In fact, some of them are the same companies who provide connection to satellite and cable.

They make money by selling me a bundle of channels.  I can pay a small fee for basic channels, I can pay a larger fee for nicer selection of channels, or I can pay big bucks for a deluxe package.

Right now, anybody who "has internet" can view your website.  But, if the companies who provide web access are allowed to "bundle internet" how many people will still have access to your website?   Will the basic subscriber?  Or, will your site only be viewable by the people who pay for the deluxe access.

It might be possible that you will have to pay for your site to be included in basic.  It might be that any household who wants to view your site will have to pay for premium.  Maybe you will either have to pay to get your content out to everyone or maybe your content will be so grand that the ISP will charge customers for the deluxe package to see your website.

ISPs might make money from your content one way or the other.  Homes and businesses might no longer get access to everything, they might only have access to websites who pay to be seen or websites that ISP might decide to sell access to.

I thought that Ajit Pai's behavior was not professional.  It was smirking, mocking, condescending.  Not the behavior of a person who I would assume to be telling the truth and who I would assume studied to know the full potential impact of his actions.

[AgenciaSEO.eu]

Hello Patrick,

Nice topic!

Well, the rollback of net neutrality has the potential to impact tech in a number of ways. In its current form, net neutrality protects the public by ensuring that ISPs treat content and services equally. Not doing so would probably make it harder for smaller players and startups (us) to compete with the big guys.

From my point of view, the internet is the infrastructure that provides the platform for much of today’s innovation. If new ventures have to worry about how corporate interests can influence who fails or succeeds, there’s less efficient competition driving progress. Moreover, if getting content in front of consumers, or having access to corporate networks requires paying extra for those ‘fast lanes,’ startups that win access might be the most well-funded rather than the ones truly adding the most value.

I'm not sure if I answered your questions, but that's my two cents so far (Btw, I'm the founder of two startups).

Roberto