A curious text is currently circulating in the Brussels bubble: It is the draft Regulation for a telecoms single market (pdf) mentioned by Commissioner Neelie Kroes, responsible for Europe's Digital Agenda, in her speech in front of the European Parliament last Tuesday, 9 July (Update: Consolidated version, pdf). During this speech, she emphasised the necessity to include “the right to net neutrality” in the upcoming instrument. “Blocking or throttling services isn't just unfair and annoying for users – it's a death sentence for innovators too. So I will guarantee net neutrality” she stressed.

We have written many articles and have waited for years for concrete actions from Commissioner Kroes. We patiently responded to consultation after consultation, despite the facts already being known to the Commission. Since 2010, there has been an increasing number of calls from the European Parliament to guarantee net neutrality by law. In January 2013, the report (pdf) by the Commission's own "High Level Group on Media Pluralism" recommended legislation to safeguard net neutrality in Europe. Now the Commission is taking the first important steps – or so Commissioner Kroes would have us believe.

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Deutsch: Europarat tritt für Netzneutralität ein

As a follow-up to the Declaration of the Committee of Ministers on network neutrality, and in the implementation of the Internet Governance Strategy 2012-2015, the Council of Europe has organised on 29-30 May 2013 a multi-stakeholder dialogue on Network Neutrality and Human Rights.

Based on a background paper, which included a Model framework on Network Neutrality, the debate started with 2 keynote interventions: one from Chris Marsden, Professor at University of Sussex that presented an overview of the history of European Network Neutrality and Human

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Deutsch: Netzneutralität: Neelie Kroes im Wechselbad der Gefühle

On 30 May 2013, European Commission Vice-President for the Digital Agenda Neelie Kroes gave a speech in front of the European Parliament calling for the need to guarantee network neutrality in Europe. During the speech she announced she would deliver a legislative package by Easter 2014.

Last week, European Digital Rights attended the second annual Stockholm Internet Forum which focused on two main themes: Internet Freedom and Security and Internet Freedom and Development. A novelty this year were the Unconference sessions.

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Deutsch: Proteste gegen die Verletzung der Netzneutralität in Deutschland

Internet activists in Germany demanded a free and open Internet on 16 May 2013, protesting in front of the annual general assembly of major German ISP Deutsche Telekom (DT). They criticized the company’s plans to slow down internet connections after a certain amount of traffic had been used.

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Deutsch: Deutsche Telekom drosselt das Internet

On 22 April 2013, the biggest German Internet operator Deutsche Telekom officially confirmed abandoning all contracts that offer flat rates for fixed Internet connections.

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Deutsch: EDRi und BEUC fordern Wahrung der Netzneutralität

A joint letter sent by the European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) and European Digital Rights (EDRi) to the European Commission on 17 April 2013 demanded the end of dangerous experimentations with the functioning of the Internet in Europe and the protection of the principles of openness and neutrality.

BEUC and EDRi fear that the upcoming non-binding Recommendations on net neutrality will be based on meaningless safeguards such as the possibility to switch operators and an obligation for each operator to have at least one full i

Press release

Today, more than 80 organisations, represented by The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) and European Digital Rights (EDRi), sent a letter (pdf) to the European Commission demanding the end of dangerous experimentation with the functioning of the Internet in Europe and the protection of the principles of openness and neutrality.

"The Internet's unique value is openness. The experimentation by certain European access providers with blocking, filtering and throttling of services creates borders in an online world whose key value is the absence of borders." explains Joe McNamee, Executive Director of EDRi. "This reckless experimentation will continue unless the European Commission puts a stop to it."