I know lots of people don’t trust Google, and the company certainly has its faults, but I still think it’s the biggest company around that’s on our side in the battle over the future of the Internet.

Two recent issues trying Google’s mettle:

1. Preston Gralla reports that Google has refused to pay special fees to BellSouth and Verizon as part of a tiered service approach that would let the carriers decide who and what type of content gets preference on the Internet.

2. Howard Mintz reports in the Mercury News that Google last year refused to comply with a Bush administration subpoena asking for all the Google searches from any one-week period. They’re apparently trying to catch guys who masturbate to pornographic images of children.

In both these cases, Google could be acting in a purely self-interested way. I actually believe it’s a mix of self-interest and principle. Either way, it’s good to read about a company with clout standing up for what turn out to be our interests as well.

[Tags: google digitalRights]

Mark Hall makes the interesting point that Google’s stand on the subpoena might become a competitive advantage that inspires others to adopt the same stand…engendering market forces that protect us against government intrusion. He points to newspapers as an example. But, as he says, we shouldn’t have to rely “on the power of market forces and profit incentives to secure our fundamental constitutional rights.”

Categories: Uncategorized dw