While the Netherlands is primarily known for windmills, tulips and legalized marijuana, it could soon be known for its net neutrality regulations as well.

Five left-leaning groups that want the U.S. government to create formal network neutrality rules are organizing a rally to protest a recent proposal by Google and Verizon Communications at Google's headquarters in Mountain View, California, Friday.

Google and Verizon Communications have released a proposal that would give the U.S. Federal Communications Commission limited power to enforce network neutrality rules, including levying fines up to US$2 million for violations by broadband providers.

A potential deal between Google and Verizon Communications on network neutrality may not carry much weight with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, which has been trying to broker its own deal in recent weeks.

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has called off negotiations on a network neutrality compromise scheduled for the coming days, saying the talks have not been fruitful enough.

In spite of the fact that the net neutrality proposal that Google and Verizon published on Aug. 9 was not much like what the rumor mill predicted as late as the day before, the proposal sure has kicked off a lot of controversy.

As the U.S. Federal Communications Commission moves toward developing formal net neutrality rules, some U.S. lawmakers and telecom-related companies have told the agency that new regulations will cause more problems than they're worth.