[rhino369]

1) Netflix could try, but ISPs would be well within their rights to block Netflix attempting generate useless traffic on their network. Even net neutrality rules would allow that for that type of action.

They could shift to a sort of bittorrent distributed system if they wanted to, but that is a huge shift in models and not really worth talking about.

2) IIRC 79% have two providers. Their local telecom and cable company.

3) You can but it's a crappy policy that would destroy the ISPs negotiating position. Potentially even letting the transit providers charge the ISP, like they already charge small ISPs.

A) Remember, Cogent and L3 are still selling Netflix and all their other customers, space on interconnect links that it doesn't have.

In what other business can you sell your client service and then fail to deliver and just blame your supplier for not giving you a cheap deal.

B)If you are going to force free peering on ISPs they should at least be able to charge the peer the actual cost to set up the peer point.

[click170]

> In what other business can you sell your client service and then fail to deliver and just blame your supplier for not giving you a cheap deal.

Isn't this exactly what the problem ISPs are demanding, which is what we're up in arms about? They're trying to double dip by getting their customers to pay and trying to extort Netflix and Level3 as well.

At least we can both agree that this is wrong.

[msandford]

Precisely. Comcast sells me X megabits per second and then, if it's to Netflix, refuses to deliver it. Anywhere else? Sure, no problem! But Netflix? 2-3Mbps tops. And I'm paying for 50Mbps. And if I VPN to ANYWHERE, magically I can get full speed, full quality Netflix without any problem.

What Comcast is (and other ISPs are) doing is intentionally not spending the $10k-$50k that it would take to upgrade the peering with Cogent or Level3 so that they can deliver to me the bandwidth that they ostensibly have promised but which they are contractually not obliged to provide. And people think that's shitty, because it sure seems like a monopolist abusing their position of power. Perhaps because it is.