Everyone in the ecosystem must be able to earn a fair profit from their contribution–otherwise the food chain is broken…and so is the Internet.
Underneath the technology shifts that the Internet has created are a series of business shifts perhaps even more profound. In networking, when business and technology issues collide, it’s often regulations and the courts that cast the defining vote, so it’s fair to say that the future of the Internet may depend on legal wrangling created by OTT (over-the-top) content in general, and Netflix in particular.
The Netflix issue is the broader one because it potentially impacts all Internet traffic. There’s general consensus among regulators globally that ISPs can’t interfere with “lawful traffic”, particularly to hinder services that might compete with the ISPs’ own.