net neutrality

noun

: the idea, principle, or requirement that Internet service providers should or must treat all Internet data as the same regardless of its kind, source, or destination

… a philosophical contest that's being fought under the banner of "net neutrality," a slogan that inspires rhetorical devotion but eludes precise definition. Broadly, it means everything on the Internet should be equally accessible—that the Internet should be a place where great ideas compete on equal terms with big money.

—Sarah Rabil

Examples of net neutrality in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Other Big Stories An appeals court struck down federal net neutrality rules. —Ian Prasad Philbrick, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2025

In saying the Federal Communications Commission can’t reinstate its net neutrality rules, the U.S. 6th District Court of Appeals relied on a June Supreme Court decision that dramatically reduced the latitude and interpretative power of government regulators trying to implement federal laws. —David Bloom, Forbes, 3 Jan. 2025

The decision deals a blow to the Biden Administration, which prioritized implementing net neutrality rules. —Emma Bowman, NPR, 3 Jan. 2025

The Sixth Circuit ruling will not have any effect on states that have implemented their own net neutrality rules, like Colorado, California, and Washington. —Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 3 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

2003, in the meaning defined above