On Wednesday, January 7, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler made news by hinting that upcoming net neutrality rules would be stronger (and more legally grounded) than previous proposals.

Why is this significant? Well, a handful of months ago, it looked like the FCC was set to adopt rules that would have allowed paid prioritization of certain Internet content—namely, that from the biggest companies. This would be devastating for smaller creators and independent labels who depend on a level online playing field to get their music and message out to the world.