Cable ISPs, although they appear to deny these allegations, were found to be blocking peer-to-peer trafic like BitTorrent. The Max Planck Institute for Software Systems report, “Glasnost: Results from tests for BitTorrent traffic blocking” differs from the cable company’s press releases. Comcast and Cox, the cable companies, were at the top of their list of blocking ISPs. None of the DSL ISPs were found to be blocking traffic.
AT&T claims that the Internet will run out of bandwidth by 2010 and thus their massive investments in deploying new infrastructure to handle new demands. Then, the Max Planck Institute for Software Systems reveals in their study that Cox and eleven other ISPs are blocking BitTorrent traffic during all times of the day. Gary Audin recently wrote about the biggest source of security threats in the world being from the U.S. Then, we’ve heard again about the Chinese government’s deployment of very deep-inspecting firewall technology (Great Wall of China Exploit) embedded in the routers from Cisco, so users can be blocked or censored.
Some ISPs are very much against regulation. So are some politicians. It appears that the ISPs say there is no problem. My thought is that regulation seems to come after the abuse is obvious. Should we wait for the abuse? Is it here now? Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) noted,” To whatever degree people were alleging that this was a solution [regulation] in search of a problem, it has found its problem”. As you work at home or on the road, how frustrating will it be when your large up- or download is either significantly delayed or blocked? What about the emerging voice, video and Web conferences, will they work acceptably?
C-Span’s new weekly half hour interview with people that shape the digital world is “The Communicators.”
On Friday, February 29th- an interview with Walter McCormick, President and CEO of the US Telecom Association was featured.
McCormick stated:
How about leased crowds?
Comcast decided to pack this week's Net Neutrality hearing in Boston with employees and, er, independent contractors.
Check out the photo at the link. You know it was taken during a Comcast speaker's turn at the microphone.
According to the Census Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission, about 47.5 percent of the US population has registered with the federal Do-Not-Call list and this represents more than 150 million telephone numbers.
What does this mean to business?
Well, it is finally happening. Time Warner Cable (TWC) is experimenting with an Internet charge structure that prices Internet usage by the gigabyte. The Washington Post reported in “Pay Per Gig” by Steven Levy,
on January 30, about the TWC Road Runner service. Beaumont, Texas will be the first trial for this metered pricing structure. Comcast says it is also considering the metered concept. Other broadband vendors are, so far, quiet on the metered usage subject.
This article was written by Justin G. Castillo, partner at Levine, Blaszak, Block & Boothby law firm
Suppose your next invoice from your telecom carrier contains a surprise: back billing for over two years’ worth of previously-unbilled charges. You dispute the back-billed charges, but the carrier insists that its back-billing is lawful.
What are your rights? How much of the back-billed charges (if any) must you pay?
I can say I know how the guy feels (Take this Job & Shove It) or anyone else that has worked in telecom. His theory is for those without vast capital resources or the stomach to take on the man with institutional financing isn’t worthwhile. There’s also an old saying- “that love is blinding.”
Andrew Odlyzko, who's one of the foremost authorities on public networking, bandwidth and net neutrality, has a new paper, "Network neutrality, search neutrality, and the never-ending conflict between efficiency and fairness in markets" that makes some critical points debunking the telcos' arguments against Net Neutrality.
By Hank Levine and Jim Blaszak
We believe that average enterprise customers did not do as well in telecom procurements in 2007 as in previous years. Our assessment is based on our observation of carrier conduct in procurements and regulatory decisions. And 2008 only promises to further separate smart, tough customers from ‘the pack’.
John Bartlett's post below reminded me that I'd received this announcement from New Edge Networks, that New Edge, which provides enterprise broadband, is now offering Class of Service over DSL (they claim to be the first to do this).
Which is more appalling: The telcos' hypocrisy or the fact that the FBI is a deadbeat?
Key quote: "To put it bluntly, it sounds as though the telecoms believe it when the FBI says the warrant is in the mail but not when they say the check is in the mail."
Gary's post below makes some great points, especially in light of reports that AT&T and other ISPs may begin filtering Internet traffic for pirated content. The issue Gary highlights is Acceptable Use Policies, and even if standard business-service contracts deal with the bandwidth issues more appropriately than individual-service agreements apparently do, this is an issue for the enterprise
It’s finally happening. The FCC is looking into restrictive practices by ISPs. The Associated Press reports in a New York Times article dated January 9, 2008, that the FCC will investigate customer complaints that Comcast interferes with the Internet traffic carried on their network. The AP first reported last October 19 that BitTorrent file sharing traffic was hindered.
It is about time that the meaning of “net neutrality” gets some teeth. This is the first time the FCC is going to really look at what “net neutrality” really means and if and when some “net neutrality” enforcement is warranted. Comcast is not the only ISP that should be investigated. I wrote a blog, “Have Read Your ISP Terms of Service Lately?, posted at VOIPLoop on October 10, 2007. I want the ATT Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) investigated as well.
It’s finally happening. The FCC is looking into restrictive practices by ISPs. The Associated Press reports in a New York Times article dated January 9, 2008, that the FCC will investigate customer complaints that Comcast interferes with the Internet traffic carried on their network. The AP first reported last October 19 that BitTorrent file sharing traffic was hindered.
It is about time that the meaning of “net neutrality” gets some teeth. This is the first time the FCC is going to really look at what “net neutrality” really means and if and when some “net neutrality” enforcement is warranted. Comcast is not the only ISP that should be investigated. I wrote a blog, “Have Read Your ISP Terms of Service Lately?, posted at VOIPLoop on October 10, 2007. I want the ATT Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) investigated as well.
Here's a terrific short article about telecom and "infotech" business models--how and why they differ, and the implications, especially for telecom, going forward.
Lots of great insights throughout, but here's what I thought was the key paragraph:
Oh, now this is just depressing.
I simply refuse to believe that aggressive lawyers and corrupt government officials were behind Alexander Graham Bell's rise to prominence. It's so unlike what came after.
Here's a column about why public telecom is a bad business for entrepreneurs. Given the season, I hope nobody has made bold to mention to this author that there isn't really a you-know-who.
Well, 2008 may be the year when the cellular industry finally ends their quest to be the new Bell System. Verizon's announcement of their ‘Any Apps, Any Device’ option signals a least an initial attempt to break the link between cellular network services and equipment. The carrier's establishment of a program to certify third-party devices to operate on their network will result in a much richer range of equipment options for Verizon's customers, and a ripple effect that results in this same type of open handset plans throughout the US cellular industry.
By Hank Levine & Jim Blaszak
Verizon Wireless’s late November announcement that it will open its network to third party devices and applications in 2008, closely followed by Google’s announcement that it would bid in the next FCC wireless spectrum auction, could be very good news for enterprise customers.
By Hank Levine & Jim Blaszak
Enterprise user IT/telecom executives understand networks and technology, but they often don’t appreciate the influence of government oversight on the availability and prices of services. As a consequence, they often can’t distinguish a vendor telling the truth from a vendor “blowing smoke.”
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VoiceCon makes its European debut 14-16 October, 2008, with Johan Krebbers of Shell keynoting. More information HERE
Small-medium business VOIP adoption lags the large enterprise, so SMB is a target-rich environment for vendors. READ MORE »
Mobile UC isn't just a subset of Unified Communications. And although it's emerging quicker in Europe, it will soon affect enterprises everywhere. READ MORE »
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