Cable internet providers are relatively inept local monopolies in some, usually the least profitable parts of their service area. They are comparatively harmless to FAANG monopolies, which have global scale and the ability to bully entire countries into complying with their business models.
Tech companies have invested massive amounts of money in lobbying and paid media to convince you to worry about ISPs so you give them more power.
Net neutrality, HTTPS everywhere, etc. all centralize power with Big Tech and gate out their competition from behaviors they already employ. And often even the journalists evangelizing them are directly on Big Tech public policy influence payrolls.
Like, I hate Comcast and AT&T as much as the next guy, but I'm forced to do business with neither (there are three residential wired Internet providers in my area) but nobody on the entire planet can escape Google.
If you live in an area where Comcast has a monopoly, or a pretty strong implied monopoly you pretty much have to do business with them. Most places in the US have at most two ISPs, one that offers reasonable speeds and the other for compliance that offers piss-poor speeds, but hey it's offered so all is well.
You're never forced to use Google. Google has a huge Internet footprint, but you can absolutely use the Internet without Google.
Incorrect: Nearly all business ventures must use Google. If you do not, you do not exist. Doesn't matter if you're a website or a restaurant. No Google presence, no business. Go run ads for your startup on Bing and see where that gets you.
Also, try to be a user on the Internet without using reCAPTCHA...
In increasingly more school districts you have to either give Google your kids' data and a Chromebook account or you have to homeschool, Google Classroom is often mandatory, as it is here.
Again, there are some local areas where one ISP or another might have a monopoly, but it isn't even remotely comparable to what Google is.
If you have one ISP and they decide to refuse you service for any reason, you don't get Google or any other website. You're putting the cart before the horse.
Which, of course, could be a reason to switch to a different provider. :)
As someone who has things like a car PC to which I can't afford an Internet connection because all of the service is priced to include people streaming YouTube and Spotify all day... I find net neutrality an appalling concept. It's essentially a way to force ISPs to serve Google and Netflix's needs exclusively. (They are the majority of all US network traffic, and their bandwidth use as they expand to 4K video is basically drowning out everything else.)
Why shouldn't I be able to get a cheap $5-10 Internet service where I have to pay extra if I want to watch Netflix? Most of my Internet devices aren't used for Netflix, but I'd love to be able to afford plans for them.
Tech companies have invested massive amounts of money in lobbying and paid media to convince you to worry about ISPs so you give them more power.
Net neutrality, HTTPS everywhere, etc. all centralize power with Big Tech and gate out their competition from behaviors they already employ. And often even the journalists evangelizing them are directly on Big Tech public policy influence payrolls.
Like, I hate Comcast and AT&T as much as the next guy, but I'm forced to do business with neither (there are three residential wired Internet providers in my area) but nobody on the entire planet can escape Google.