net neutrality

Comcast unveils new broadband policy

Paul Mah — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 10:00:22 -0400

Comcast has revealed the details of its new plan to shift from a protocol-oriented approach to a scheme based on aggregate use of bandwidth instead. This comes on the heels of an FCC decision that Comcast's earlier approach violates net neutrality. The new plan works by de-prioritizing heavy users located in a physical section of the network in which a predetermined threshold of traffic is exceeded. A user's priority is reset upon a sufficient period of time. At the moment, this threshold is set at 70 percent of either upstream or downstream traffic. The timer for re-prioritization has been pegged at 15 minutes. Obviously, actual settings might change pending tweaking by Comcast.

To read more about Comcast's new broadband policy:
- check out this ChannelWeb article

Comcast to set monthly bandwidth limits

Paul Mah — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 11:33:11 -0400

Beginning October 1, Comcast, the largest provider of cable broadband in the U.S., will impose a monthly limit of 250 gigabytes of bandwidth on residential users. Customers who exceed the 250 G-byte limit will be warned to curtail their use. A one year service suspension will result should the limit be exceeded again in the next six months. This is a departure from the current situation where Comcast will contact high-bandwidth users should they cross an internal threshold. The current cap comes on the heels of the FCC ruling that Comcast violated net neutrality principles with their attempts to throttle BitTorrent traffic.

To find out more about this new move by Comcast:
- check out this PC World article

Google to develop software to detect ISP throttling

Paul Mah — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 07:41:58 -0400

Always vocal about its stance in favor of net neutrality, Google has finally thrown down the gauntlet and declared that it is working on software tools that will enable users to detect whether their broadband connections are being manipulated by their ISPs. This was revealed by the Senior Policy Director for Google, Richard Whitt, who said this during a panel discussion at Santa Clara University.

According to Whitt, the idea is that customers at least be able to find out if they are being throttled, and then let their unhappiness be known to their ISPs. Not everyone agrees though. In a detailed post, Technology Consultant George Ou outlined how a single BitTorrent user can ruin the broadband experience in a typical household.

For more on ISP throttling detection:
- check out this HotHardware article

Comcast testing new methods of throttling bandwidth

Paul Mah — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 05:00:09 -0400

In the wake of the furor over the way Comcast uses TCP reset flags to throttle BitTorrent and other peer-to-peer (P2P) traffic, the company is testing out a trio of protocol agnostic methods for controlling network congestion. The tests are being conducted in Pennsylvania and Virginia, as well as a third one slated for Colorado Springs later this year. Different types of hardware and configurations will be utilized at every location, with Comcast tightlipped about the exact hardware or rules used to manage the flow of traffic.

Whatever it is, as Comcast has promised to drop its current practice of discriminating against P2P traffic by this year, it certainly will finalize on one method and get it rolled-out nation-wide before then.

For more Comcast:
- check out this The Register article

Presidential candidates thin on tech

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 07:59:59 -0400

The presidential candidates are getting up to speed on technology slowly. Although they acknowledge that technology is a big driver in today's economy, they have spent little time on an issue that increasingly impacts all Americans. An article in Baseline looks at the candidates and what kind of policies they have posited to keep the high tech world flourishing. There are some broad outlines, but not many specifics.

Republican John McCain wants to lower the overall corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 25 percent, allowing businesses to make expensive investments in technology, thereby making the research and development tax cut permanent.

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama does not offer specifics on how he will restore America's technology competitiveness but has been a supporter of net neutrality, increasing broadband capacity and creating a federal Chief Technology Officer position. Meanwhile, Senator Hillary Clinton's technology agenda focuses on energy and includes establishing a $50 billion Strategic Energy Fund as well as increasing basic federal research budgets. Watch for more specific positions to start emerging as the general election gets closer.

For more on the presidential candidates and technology:
- See this Baseline article

ALSO: Be sure to check out our special report on security threats and the 2008 Presidential election.

Net neutrality back on the radar

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 06:59:59 -0500

The House of Representatives is once again delving into the issue of Net neutrality. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California said that without new Net neutrality laws, "telecommunications and cable companies will be able to create toll lanes on the information superhighway. This strikes at the heart of the free and equal nature of the Internet." That is a scary thought, but plenty of insiders have blamed the failure of getting legislation passed so far on the cable industry.

Rep. Ed Markey re-introduced legislation on Wednesday that seeks to make sure the next generation of Internet users have open access to the net and are protected from the whims of the broadband industry that controls the networks. He hopes to push the bill forward this year. The Open Internet Coalition, which includes Ask.com, eBay, Match.com, Google and a number of other advocacy groups, says that Markey's legislation "will make Net Neutrality the law of the land, and will require the FCC to protect Internet freedom from the predatory efforts of the telco and cable gatekeepers."

For more on Net neutrality:
- See this CNET article
- Also see this CNET article
- And this InformationWeek article

Comcast blocking Lotus Notes traffic?

Tue, 23 Oct 2007 06:59:53 -0400

Last week, we briefly mentioned a report that Comcast was regulating its network by slowing Bit Torrent upload speeds. That's certainly a problem as Bit Torrent has a number of legitimate uses outside of content piracy--think of downloading open-source applications, for example. Still, Comcast will likely get away with this, as they can always trot out the old piracy scapegoat if anyone criticizes their prioritization of network traffic. The latest word on Comcast, however, is that the company may be regulating more than just Bit Torrent traffic. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a pro network neutrality group, has discovered that traffic relating to P2P application Gnutella is being blocked by Comcast, as well as traffic relating to the Lotus Notes suite. You read that right, Lotus Notes. No idea why Comcast would ever want to regulate traffic relating to the business groupware suite (or if it's even intentional) but they had better sort this one out quick, lest they become known as the ISP that thinks it should decide what you can and can't do on the Internet.

For more on the network regulation:
- see this Ars Technica article

Broadband Network Deployment Slows in the U.S.

Mon, 28 May 2007 20:01:39 -0400

The promise of broadband in the United States has always been high, but a more accurate--if less optimistic--reality is beginning to settle in. In April, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development released its broadband network deployment numbers and the findings are less than positive: the United States is falling further behind other developed countries in broadband deployment. The U.S. now ranks 15th among the OECD's 30 member countries in broadband deployment at the end of 2006 and ranks 20th in terms of growth rate of broadband penetration. It appears that the Federal Communications Commission is pretty surprised by these numbers as well. The government agency is taking a closer look at "net neutrality" and is determining whether or not large carriers should prioritize voice and data traffic for some customers over others.

For more on the state of broadband in the United States:
- see this article in InformationWeek

Editor's Corner

Thu, 08 Mar 2007 19:01:40 -0500

Exclusive: Skype vs. the wireless industry
Situated as we are, thousands of miles away from Silicon Valley, it's not often that we here at DailyTechRag get a front row seat for the latest developments in tech. However, when it comes to legislation and legal wrangling, being just a few blocks from the White House really pays off. There's a battle on the horizon here in Washington and the outcome will ultimately determine who controls the Internet. You've likely heard about the idea of Net Neutrality and what's at stake for both businesses and consumers. Today, we'll take a closer look at an often overlooked area in the debate: the neutrality (or lack thereof) of wireless networks. VoIP service provider Skype has been scurrying around Washington as of late, trying to convince the FCC to force wireless carriers to open up their networks. If Skype is successful, it could change the wireless industry in this country as we know it and everything from mobile VoIP over WiFi to carrier-agnostic handsets could become a reality. Skype recently held a public event to clarify their position and invited a few friends--like controversial Net Neutrality activist and Columbia Law School professor Timothy Wu--and a few enemies--like the CTIA--along for the ride. DTR was there to watch the sparks fly, so click on over and read our special report on the event, complete with photos and video.

Also, don't forget that this Sunday is "spring forward" day for Daylight Savings Time. We wouldn't want you sleeping through Sunday brunch--or your Monday morning meeting, for that matter. -Mehan

AT&T deal lays groundwork for net neutrality legislation

Tue, 02 Jan 2007 19:01:34 -0500

When we last reported on the sticky issue of net neutrality, the outgoing 109th Congress had failed to pass any legislation either allowing or barring the practice of network-wide packet prioritization. Since then, little has changed from a legislative point of view, although there has been an important twist in the FCC's dealings with AT&T that could have a profound effect on network neutrality in the United States. As part of their bid to complete an $86 billion merger with BellSouth, the telecom giant has agreed to abide by a set of network neutrality guidelines for at least 30 months after the closure of the merger. The FCC's agreement with AT&T could lay out the blueprint for future net neutrality provisions and ultimately, laws. "The agreement once and for all puts to rest the bogus argument that no one can define Net neutrality," said Ben Scott, policy director for the advocacy group Free Press, who you may know from their "Save the Internet" campaign. A number of network neutrality bills are currently in the works; a few could make their way to the floor in within a matter of months.

For more on the current state of net neutrality:
- see this CNET article