Net neutrality continues to stir major controversy over how – or whether – the Federal Communications Commission should draft rules for equal treatment of online traffic, but some businesses might be in trouble no matter what happens.

FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler's proposed rules regarding net neutrality – the concept that all traffic is created equal and every website should have the same chance to compete without being slowed, blocked or disadvantaged by Internet providers – have generated more than 1 million public comments, in part out of fear that the proposal would enable Internet service providers to charge for faster online speeds.

Wheeler’s rules aim to prevent anti-competitive blocking or slowing of Web traffic. But the establishment of an online “fast lane” could leave behind any companies unable to afford new tolls for Internet use.

Adult entertainment is among the sectors with the most to lose in the net neutrality debate, along with any company that uses online video or real-time actions like gaming that can’t afford to pay Internet service providers for faster connections. Access to free content on the Internet has shuttered many adult entertainment businesses, and more will close if paid prioritization becomes the new norm under the FCC's proposed rules, Larry Flynt, owner of Hustler Magazine, tells U.S. News.

“It’s doubtful that smaller, independent websites would survive without some kind of net neutrality protection,” Flynt says. “It’s a huge First Amendment issue.”

Netflix has agreed to pay service providers Comcast and Verizon for better access out of concern that poor connections would slow customer downloads of its video content, but that’s only the beginning of risks to video traffic, says Marvin Ammori, a fellow at the New America Foundation think tank.

Those at risk, Ammori says, include online education companies like Codecademy that depend on video downloads, along with startups hoping to compete with tech giants like Microsoft, which is dependent on quality speeds in its real-time Xbox gaming and its online communication site Skype. Microsoft is among the dozens of technology companies that filed with the FCC arguing in favor of strong net neutrality rules, citing that its traffic has been slowed or blocked in some regions where such protections don't exist.

“There is a lot more collateral damage than people would expect simply on video,” Ammori says. “Page load time is super important. People will leave your site more quickly or spend less money if your site doesn’t load quickly enough.”

If Wheeler’s existing net neutrality proposal does not pass, paid prioritization would likely happen anyway, says Michael Weinberg, a vice president at consumer advocacy group Public Knowledge. If the Internet were managed this way, it could evolve with better services designed for larger companies in the "fast lane," leaving behind small businesses with low budgets such as independent journalism sites, Weinberg says.

FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler's net neutrality rules could heavily impact the adult entertainment and video game industries. Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

“If you have some rule that allows paid prioritization, we don’t consider that a real net neutrality rule,” he says. “Any small site that does not have the means to do business to coordinate with every ISP in the country is exposed.”

Allowing Internet service providers to charge for faster speeds could lower their incentives to please customers by improving networks, says Evan Engstrom, policy director at Engine, which advocates for the startup industry.

"In an economy with paid prioritization, people will be less inclined to invest in startups that depend upon data feeds," Engstrom says.

A lack of net neutrality protections could disadvantage Web companies that use streaming content like photo sites, cloud storage sites, music sites and video sites – including live stream service Ustream, company CEO Brad Hunstable tells U.S. News.

“There are innovations happening every day because the Internet is open and everyone can do this,” Hunstable says.

The Internet has already forced many industries to adapt in recent years, and the absence of net neutrality protections could complicate things more. While Hustler's website is “one of a few sites doing OK” in the adult entertainment industry, the costs of making pornography have risen to match consumer expectations, and many smaller sites will likely close no matter what happens at the FCC, Flynt says.

But allowing the commission to regulate the Internet could prove equally risky for pornography, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., said during a June hearing of the House Judiciary Committee.

“I think you've given us the appropriate characterization of the true reason for net neutrality," Issa said to net neutrality advocate and Columbia Law School professor Tim Wu during the hearing. "So what you're saying, in effect, is if the FCC gets ahold of this we could go back to 'Leave It To Beaver' times, times in which two married adults had to be in twin beds in order to get past the social norms of the day."

The FCC may eventually limit speech on the Internet the way it does on broadcast networks, Issa said, noting that pornography and programs with lots of swearing like HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” are not allowed on broadcast TV.

Illustration by Ethan Rosenberg for USN&WR/Photo by Topical Press Agency via Getty Images

Congress, unsurprisingly, has a partisan split on the issue. Republicans broadly oppose net neutrality, fearing that it would damage the free market of the Internet, while Democrats oppose Wheeler’s current proposal because they argue it could enable paid prioritization.

“An expansive new regulatory scheme from the FCC would surely stifle this vibrant marketplace where entrepreneurs big and small are thriving,” Issa tells U.S. News in an email.

The FCC would “absolutely” try to regulate Internet content if it gained more control of networks through net neutrality, Flynt says, adding he’s always been “suspicious” of the commission.

“People think the FCC is neutral – they’re not. It’s a political agency,” Flynt says. “Net neutrality cuts both ways.”

Arguing against those fears, Wu said during the June hearing that net neutrality is meant to prevent bias against Internet content. He coined the term "net neutrality" in his research on Internet policy.

“We‘ve had net neutrality rules de facto for the past 20 years; we’ve had an incredible outpouring of speech from across the political spectrum,” said Wu, who is running for lieutenant governor of New York.

Despite his fears about the FCC, Flynt says he supports net neutrality because it would ideally give equal protection to online traffic. His free speech advocacy includes a landmark Supreme Court case he won in 1988 against evangelical minister Jerry Falwell, regarding a parody about Falwell printed in Hustler.