[governance] Re: Comcast Blocks Some Internet Traffic

[Milton L Mueller]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Stephane Bortzmeyer [mailto:bortzmeyer at internatif.org]
> The diffserv protocol is a _tool_. As most tools, it can be used for a
> lot of different things, some being bad. If its purpose is to reduce
> my SIP bandwidth because my provider finds it endangers its selling of
> traditional telephone services, yes, it is a violation of net
> neutrality.

Right, so the "crime" is anticompetitive behavior, not QoS or bandwidth management per se. The problem with a lot of the looser NN talk is that it confuses a desirable policy outcome (open, neutral access) with a fixed technical mechanism for handling packets. We may want to tell carriers they cannot engage in activities that block or degrade independent digital goods and service providers. We do not want to tell them that they must always handle all packets in exactly the same way. 


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