Comcast, AT&T have the traffic cones ready for Internet slow lanes

8 December 2017 by Steve Blum
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AT&T and Comcast are offering two good reasons for keeping broadband under the common carrier regulatory umbrella, and not scraping network neutrality rules. Not that they meant to do that. It’s just their nature.

Comcast is backing away from an unconditional promise to abide by net neutrality principles, regardless of whether or not federal rules require it to do so. That pledge was made in 2014, while Comcast was in the middle of an unsuccessful attempt to add cable systems owned by Time Warner and Charter Communications to its portfolio. According to an article in Ars Technica by John Brodkin, Comcast has opened the door to paid prioritisation – selling content companies fast lanes to broadband subscribers, while keeping everyone else in the slow lane…

While the company still says it won’t block or throttle Internet content, it has dropped its promise about not instituting paid prioritization.

Instead, Comcast now vaguely says that it won’t “discriminate against lawful content” or impose “anti-competitive paid prioritization.” The change in wording suggests that Comcast may offer paid fast lanes to websites or other online services, such as video streaming providers, after [the Federal Communications Commission] eliminates the net neutrality rules.

AT&T, on the other hand, announced good news: its online video service, DirecTv Now, just passed the 1 million subscriber mark. It’s good for AT&T, which is fighting to hold on to video customers, and it’s generally good for the industry and consumers. It’s more confirmation that there is a competitive market for over-the-top television, which should result in greater consumer choice.

Should.

If you’re getting broadband service from AT&T, you can freely choose between OTT platforms. But only so long as AT&T follows net neutrality rules. Once those are gone, it will have strong incentives – a million and counting – to shape its network traffic to favor DirecTv Now, while sending everyone else into the slow lane.

The FCC is still on track to vote on Thursday to scrap common carrier status for broadband service and with it, net neutrality rules.