Lake Region Position Regarding the end of Net Neutrality

In December 2017, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) removed some of the consumer protections, popularly known as Net Neutrality. While we are not changing the way we deliver internet service to our internet subscribers, the board and management would like to express its official stance on this issue.

What is Net Neutrality?
The phrase net neutrality is most commonly used in reference to restrictions put in place by the FCC in 2015. These restrictions kept Internet Service Providers (ISPs)—the companies that provide internet service to consumers and businesses, like Lake Region Technology & Communications (LRTC)—from privileging certain types of content. It was required that every website be treated neutrally (hence net neutrality)—every website should load as quickly or cost the same to deliver as any other website.

Our Position
The board and management's position is that LRTC will follow the original net neutrality restrictions from 2015, even if the FCC no longer requires us to do so.

Lake Region Technology & Communications does not block or throttle or otherwise prevent customers from accessing lawful content, applications, service, or non-harmful devices.

Lake Region Technology & Communications does not practice Affiliated Prioritization or Paid Prioritization.

Lake Region Technology & Communications does not practice Congestion Management.

Lake Region Technology & Communications does not block or rate-control specific protocols or protocol ports, modifies protocol fields in ways not prescribed by the protocol standard, or otherwise inhibits or favors certain applications or classes of applications.

Lake Region Technology & Communications has no restrictions on the types of devices to connect to the network.

Lake Region Technology & Communications uses quality of service controls ("QOS") to separate data types and prioritize. For example, if a customer is using all available bandwidth and initiates a VoIP call, the data can be limited in favor of the VoIP service.

We believe equal access to every part of the internet—without throttling or blocking— is not only desirable for our customers, but also is in the best interest of the communities we serve.