Constitution For The Internet
Preamble In recognition of those truths, which are self evident, that all individuals are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these rights are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. In recognition that any attempt to abridge those rights, by any power or individual, foreign or domestic, public or private, is an act of tyranny on not only the parts, but on the whole. We the denizens of the Internet, in order to create a more perfect experience, establish justice, insure digital tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and to our posterity, do ordain to establish this Constitution for the Internet.
Article I - End Users
Section 1 - An End User shall be any individual person, organization, or entity who uses any Platform or Internet Service Provider of which they have no ownership.
Section 2 - It is the duty of the End User to know and understand the terms of service, conditions, rules, and codes of conduct for every Platform or Internet Service Provider they are using. The End User understands and acknowledges that violation or deviation may result in punitive action from the Platform or Internet Service Provider.
Section 3 - It is the duty of the End User to know and understand any and all fee structures and schedules for every Platform or Internet Service Provider they are using. The End User understands and acknowledges that failure to remit payment may result in punitive action from the Platform or Internet Service Provider.
Section 4 - An End User shall be considered ideologically, politically, religiously, philosophically and in all other ways neutral, and therefore considered a Detached Party, except when declaring any form of bias.
Article II - Platforms
Section 1 - Any location, website, or application which End Users may access through Internet communication shall be considered a Platform.
Section 2 - A Platform may allow End Users access to digital images, video, audio, written content, programmed content, coded content, or physical products free of charge or for a structured fee or set of fees.
Section 3 - A Platform may allow End Users post or host digital images, video, audio, written, programmed, or coded content free of charge or for a structured fee or set of fees.
Section 4 - A Platform may allow End Users to send digital communication between End Users and the Platform, or between End Users and other End Users free of charge or for a structured fee or set of fees.
Section 5 - A Platform may allow End Users to send digital currency between End Users and the Platform, or between End Users and other End Users free of charge or for a structured fee or set of fees.
Section 6 - A Platform may allow End Users to exchange digital or physical products between End Users and the Platform, or between End Users and other End Users, for physical or digital products free of charge or for a structured fee or set of fees.
Section 7 - A Platform may allow End Users to exchange digital currency between End Users and the Platform, or between End Users and other End Users, for physical or digital products free of charge or for a structured fee or set of fees.
Section 8 - A Platform shall be considered ideologically, politically, religiously, philosophically and in all other ways neutral, and therefore considered, operate, and conduct business without bias as a Detached Party, except when declaring any form of bias upon inception or after 90 days notice to End Users.
Section 9 - A Platform whose primary function is communication between End Users, via text, audio, video, images and/or any combination thereof, shall, at all times, be considered and designated an open forum unless specifically declared in the terms of service, conditions, rules, and/or codes of conduct, either at inception or after 90 days notice to all End Users. Furthermore, a Platform which has not declared itself to be a closed forum shall, at all times, be considered, operate, and conduct business without bias as a Detached Party.
Section 10 - A Platform whose primary function is the transfer, processing, exchange, management, and/or handling of currency, shall, at all times, be considered, operate, and conduct business without bias as a Detached Party.
Section 11 - A Platform may create terms of service, conditions, rules, and codes of conduct which shall be written in plain language, are specific, and shall apply on the Platform exclusively and shall be presented to prospective End Users before entering into agreement with End Users and posted in an easily accessible and accurately labeled location on the Platform. For avoidance of doubt, in situations of ambiguity, any misunderstandings leading to claims of violation shall be resolved in favor of the End User.
Section 12 - A Platform may amend terms of service, conditions, rules, and codes of conduct. All amendments to terms of service, conditions, rules, and codes of conduct shall be posted in an easily accessible and accurately labeled section of the Platform and notice shall be sent via written electronic or physical mail to all current End Users specifying changes not less than 90 days prior to changes taking effect.
Section 13 - A Platform may create structured fees or sets of fees which shall be presented to prospective End Users before entering into agreement with End Users and posted in an easily accessible and accurately labeled location on the Platform.
Section 14 - A Platform may amend structured fees or sets of fees. All amendments to fee structures shall be posted in an easily accessible and accurately labeled location on the Platform. The Platform shall notify all current End Users that the fee structure shall be changing at the end of their current cycle and/or contract with the Platform via written electronic or physical mail, but not less than 90 days prior to the changes taking effect.
Article III - Internet Service Providers
Section 1 - An Internet Service Provider shall be any corporation, company, cooperative, or entity which provides, through any means, the ability for End Users to access Platforms.
Section 2 - An Internet Service Provider may develop infrastructure and new technology through research, development, financial investment or any combination thereof.
Section 3 - An Internet Service Provider shall be ideologically, politically, religiously, philosophically and in all other ways neutral and shall, at all times, be considered, operate, and conduct business without bias as a Detached Party.
Section 4 - An Internet Service Provider may create structured fees or sets of fees which shall be presented to prospective End Users before entering into agreement with End Users and posted in easily accessible and accurately labeled location on the Internet Service Provider’s Platform and physical place of business.
Section 5 - An Internet Service Provider may amend structured fees or sets of fees. All amendments to fee structures shall be posted in an easily accessible and accurately labeled location on the Internet Service Provider’s Platform and physical place of business. The Platform shall notify all current End Users that the fee structure shall be changing at the end of their current contract with the Platform via written electronic or physical mail, but not less than 90 days prior to the changes taking effect.
Section 6 - An Internet Service Provider shall provide the service to the End User for the tier for which the End User is paying for not less than ninety eight percent of the current billing cycle and not less than ninety eight percent of the speeds in that tier. In the event the Internet Service Provider is unable to do so for any reason, the Internet Service Provider shall forfeit to the End User(s) affected, the affected End User(s) fees equal to three times the percentage of service failure.
Article IV - Status It shall be possible that any individual person, organization, or entity may, through their involvement on the World Wide Web, be an End User, Platform, or Internet Service Provider, or any combination thereof. Therefore, all shall consider their status, based on such involvement, and shall act in the manners prescribed herein which apply to the current status of their interactions.
Article V - Minors An individual having not yet reached the age of eighteen years shall at all times be considered a minor.
Article VI - Agreements Between Parties
Section 1 - Any agreement between End Users, Platforms, Internet Service Providers, or any combination thereof shall be entered into voluntarily and without coercion on the part of any Party involved.
Section 2 - Any agreement between End Users, Platforms, Internet Service Providers, or any combination thereof shall only be considered valid with the informed consent of all Parties involved.
Section 3 - Any agreement between End Users, Platforms, Internet Service Providers, or any combination thereof shall not be considered valid unless all Parties involved are not considered a Minor on the date which the agreement was entered into.
Article VII - Damages And Harm
Section 1 - Damages and Harm shall be any action which causes any individual person, organization or entity measurable and demonstrable loss of life, limb, business, finance, or personal standing.
Section 2 - The burden of proof rests solely and exclusively with any individual person, organization, entity, or government claiming harm or damages.
Section 3 - In circumstances in which measurable and demonstrable Damages and/or Harm requires punitive action of a legal or civil nature, the authorities present in the jurisdiction in which the Damages or Harm originated shall be responsible for the initiation of any necessary process.
Article VIII - Bill Of Rights
Preface - In recognition of the fact that the Internet is a marketplace, playground, university, and courtroom of ideas, this document intends to lay out the following set of guarantees for the purpose of ensuring that said ideas may be exchanged and explored in an equitable manner. It is recognized that the best way to secure the rights of any entity, group, corporation, or cooperative is to secure the rights of all individuals. Furthermore, it is also recognized that securing and maintaining freedoms within the Internet shall be possible when all Parties uphold the following guarantees.
Guarantee I - Freedom Of Expression and Ideology
A Detached Party shall make no policy respecting an establishment of ideology, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of Parties peaceably to assemble, and to petition Parties for a redress of grievances.
Guarantee II - Accountability
Scrutiny, being necessary to the security of a Free Internet, the right to hold Parties accountable shall not be infringed.
Guarantee III - Data Collection and Surveillance
No Party shall, at any time, allow or be allowed to collect or profit from, without express, explicit, written, and informed consent, any data, information, metadata, activities, property, both physical and intellectual, or rights belonging to any other Party. Further, the consenting Party shall retain line item veto power over any form of collection at any time in perpetuity and without prejudice, and no surveillance shall occur without due process of law.
Guarantee IV- Data Distribution
No Party shall, at any time, allow or be allowed to transfer, distribute, or transmit, without express, explicit, written, and informed consent, any data, information, metadata, activities, property, both physical and intellectual, or rights belonging to any other Party.
Guarantee V - Data Transfer In Criminal Prosecutions
No data shall be turned over to governments or law enforcement except upon presentation of a warrant, supported by oath or affirmation, and meticulously describing the information to be seized.
Guarantee VI - Due Process
No Party shall take any punitive action against any other Party without informing the second Party of the exact, specific, and precise nature and cause of said action, and, without providing the second Party reasonable opportunity to rectify the infraction and make good, their standing with the first Party. Nor may any Detached Party hold accountable any Parties whose actions are not directly, and demonstrably connected to the Detached Party.
Guarantee VII - Protection of Minors
No Party shall, at any time, allow or be allowed to create, transfer, distribute, or transmit, any content which contains sexually explicit or implicit depictions of a minor.
Guarantee VIII - Profit Duly and Justly Earned
Any Party whose actions can not be demonstrably proven, through due process, to infringe upon the rights of others, or to have caused Damages or Harm, shall not be prevented from generating revenue for themselves.
Guarantee IX - Freedom From Undue Interference
No Party shall, at any time, through deception, dishonesty, or anticompetitive practice, prevent any other Party from generating revenue for themselves.
Guarantee X - Equal Treatment
All Parties shall, at all times, receive equal treatment and application of any terms of service, conditions, rules, and codes of conduct, except when the Party being treated unequally has contractually agreed, through express, written, informed consent, to unequal treatment.