Re: Comcast and network neutrality and all that

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Brett Glass <brett () lariat net>
Date: January 14, 2009 1:34:33 PM EST
To: dave () farber net, "ip" <ip () v2 listbox com>
Subject: Re: [IP] Comcast and network neutrality and all that

At 10:05 AM 1/14/2009, Gene Gaines wrote:

> The EFF's Network Neutrality testing tool.
> www.eff.org/testyourisp/switzerland
>
> Open source.  In alpha.  Command line.
>
> Briefly, "...Switzerland is designed to detect the modification
> or injection of packets of data traveling over IP networks,

It's important to note that this tool tests for only ONE set
of behaviors that are claimed by SOME people to be a violation
of "network neutrality." Such tools will detect transparent
caching, firewalling against open Windows shares, blocking of
TCP port 25 against spammers, and other beneficial practices as
"violations." What's worse, they will completely miss practices
which are actually of concern -- including anticompetitive
business practices.

It's time to drop the term "network neutrality" from serious
discussions of Internet governance and broadband policy, and
instead discuss individually the many, many issues which various
interest groups have attempted to add to this ill-defined bundle.

--Brett Glass




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