This week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) plans to release new rules that would undermine net neutrality by allowing certain companies to pay internet providers, like Comcast and Verizon, for faster connections to stream video and content.

In January, a U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that the FCC no longer had the authority to regulate internet providers to maintain net neutrality, the principle that online content providers should have equal access to consumers, who should also have equal access to content. The commission's latest rule is another move away from the responsibility to ensure equal access to internet content for providers and consumers.

FCC head, Tom Wheeler, argued that the rules do not go against net neutrality, but rather cooperate with the court's January decision. 

The new rules could affect costs if consumers foot the bill charged to companies like Netflix or Disney for maintaining quality speeds through internet providers like Comcast and Verizon. The rule could also affect content providers who cannot afford buying into faster speed plans, and consumers who become frustrated with smaller sites slower speeds. Under the new rules internet providers would have to be open about their practices. 

Wheeler maintained that the move did not represent a "turnaround in policy" and that, "behavior that harms consumers or competition will not be permitted."

In an open letter to journalists earlier this year, former FCC chair Michael Copps apologized for the commission's decade-long encouragement of media conglomeration, arguing that it undermined democracy and access to information. The FCC's latest move was decided as the government continues to weigh Comcast's proposed merger with Time Warner Cable, which would combine two top internet providers into one massive company that also includes major media network and content provider, NBCUniversal.