[mixologic]

But they cant cut out the middleman. Comcast doesnt have a direct connection to netflix or anywhere else on the internet.

I think Level 3 should straight up shut off their peering agreement with comcast and watch how all the last mile customers blame comcast for the issue, until such time as comcast stops playing games.

[danielweber]

That assumes they blame Comcast. Maybe they blame Netflix for not working.

If you get to set the narrative such that one side or the other as the only ones who gain from the interconnection, this becomes trivial, but the hard facts are that both sides want the interconnection, but to try as hard to pretend that the other side is the more desperate one in the deal.

[mixologic]

Comcasts customers pay Comcast for service. If every website they went to didnt work, they'd be calling, and blaming, Comcast.

[pdonis]

> Comcast doesnt have a direct connection to netflix

They do now that a deal has been worked out:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-switch/wp/2014/02/23...

[mixologic]

All of their customers will still have to go through middlemen. Thats how the internet functions.

[pdonis]

> All of their customers will still have to go through middlemen.

Not if they're watching Netflix. As I read the deal, Comcast and Netflix will be directly connected, so if you're a Comcast customer watching Netflix, your packets only traverse Comcast's and Netflix's networks; no third parties are involved.

[exelius]

But the Internet doesn't work that way: if Level3 shut off their peering with Comcast, Level3's customers would just find another transit provider and route around L3 because those companies are still in business to make money. They don't care about squabbles between Comcast and L3; they just want their monetized traffic to get delivered. The last-mile customers probably wouldn't even notice; but Level3's customers would likely be forced to pay more for transit from another company. But they would still pay.