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Design Your Own Internet Fast Lanes (2014-12-25)
Recently, Senator Patrick Leahy wrote a letter to some of the top ISPs in the US, asking them to reject the paid prioritization deals which have been proposed by content companies. For those of you who aren’t aware of the proposition, it basically states that content companies would pay ISPs to ensure the smooth and fast delivery of their traffic, hence making it easier for consumers to view content over the internet.
But with the deal still raw, telecom giant, AT&T has sent a proposal to the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) regarding the so called internet fast lanes which would be created at the discretion of the user and not the ISPs.
What his means, that unlike the initial deal of the ISPs, with the new proposition, the users will be put in the driver’s seat and would be able to direct their ISP on what they (the user) prioritize. For example, if you’re using Skype and you receive emails or a Netflix stream which can wait, the user can now tell the ISP which one to prioritize over the other. And while the FCC has recently stated that it received thousands of letters from concerned people on the subject, the ruling will most probably be finalized within a few months, if not later due to the amount of red tape involved.
The main problem with this proposal is that it seems that it will stifle healthy competition and the use of latest technologies. Since the big player ISPs (AT&T, Comcast) will seek payments from websites to ensure that their content loads faster, hence reaching the users quicker, unlawful or illicit deals can be made with the larger websites with deep pockets to make sure their websites load faster than the competition. In short, the problem is whether or not ISPs will be able to treat everyone equally and provide a level playing field which will encourage healthy competition and innovation.
On the other side of the argument there are those who do not blame the tiers of service, but rather the packet discrimination which is provided within that tier. For instance, if a user pays for one tier, they expect all of the packets to be sent or received the same, regardless of their source or the destination.
Ending Note
In the end, considering that this is a big problem, especially for the big players such as Google, they (the big fish) should be spending more money in on using the latest technologies and increasing the bandwidth level within their existing infrastructure. The reason being that if customers are complaining about the speed now, imagine what will happen later on, when there will supposedly be even more content available on the internet which will demand higher speeds. Regardless of whether it’s the ISP’s or cable television and phone companies, they will all need to keep up with the increasing demand of the consumers.
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