NNSquad - Network Neutrality Squad
[ NNSquad ] define: "service providers have to manage their networks somehow, especially during peak times."
I'd like to stick my neck out there and ask about this often-repeated obvious-sounding statement mentioned in the article: "service providers have to manage their networks somehow, especially during peak times." Comcast has forever tainted the term "Network Management" for me, so perhaps I'm more blind than dense. But the above quote seems like gibberish to me. Recently, George Ou tried to repaint BitTorrent as a non-neutral application because it "exploits" long-standing congestion controls by using multiple connections to download a single file[1]. I hold that his reasoning is errant because any benefit exists only while the TCP connections are recovering from the congestion. Congestion control responses to a dropped packet are an attempt to keep an ailing network alive and communicating. No system runs well when demand outstrips its capacity for extended periods. Network operators should and do build capacity far enough ahead of demand so that congestion-caused dropped packets are the occasional peak-moment exception rather than the full-time rule. Predicting and meeting demand is "network management." Removing hosts that maliciously interfere with others is network management. Detecting and fixing poor-performing segments is network management. Halting sales of new accounts until additional capacity is online or restructuring their product offerings to meet ever-changing styles of usage seems like "network management." What does "service providers have to manage their networks somehow, especially during peak times" really mean? "Especially during peak times" is the part I'm struggling with. I can think of a few examples, but not many -- and certainly none that come approximately close to what the ISPs are actually doing. My examples of acceptable peak-time management include: - asking users to voluntarily back-off during peak hours - selling tiers that cap to different speeds or charges a premium for high consumption during "prime time" - supporting an accepted "Internet Standard"-level QoS method so that users can identify which of their packets require special handling during moments of congestion I offer those examples not to steer the debate, but merely to show my thinking. My question is -- is my thinking along the right track? Or am I missing something due to my bias? -- Robb Topolski [1] http://blogs.zdnet.com/Ou/?p=1078 > -----Original Message----- > AP's take on the Comcast "treating all traffic equally" story > > http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Comcast-BitTorrent.html > > --Lauren--