Comcast could receive hefty FCC fine for throttling Bit Torrent traffic

by Jason Harris Jan 8th 2008

Remember October's news of Comcast throttling Bit Torrent traffic? The debacle not only created a firestorm of bad press for the nation's largest cable provider but also re-ignited the nationwide debate about Net Neutrality. We had numerous signs that Comcast was inhibiting our use of this legal and legitimate file transfer protocol, but to have the AP catch them red handed was icing on the cake.

To add to our pleasure, we learned today that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has finally taken notice of Comcast's indiscretion as well. According to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, a group of consumer advocates and legal scholars have asked the commission to look into Comcast discriminating against specific types of data (read: Bit Torrent). The groups have also requested the FCC to fine Comcast $195,000 per affected subscribers. In case you were wondering, at last report, Comcast has 9.1 million subscribers.

We don't really think Comcast will be forced to fork out the projected $1.77 trillion, but we do hope they get scraped through the mud on this one. They completely disregarded their entire customer base and should receive far more than just bad press as a result of this. If you are a company and you're going to filter network traffic, be transparent and disclose it up front. If not, be ready to pay up to Mr. Martin.

[via Mashable]

Tags: bittorrent, comcast, net neutrality, NetNeutrality

Reader Comments (Page 2 of 2)

John S said 6:46PM on 1-09-2008

I agree with James that we are selfish to expect high speed unlimited bandwidth without it affecting other customers.
We ether have to find a way to increase bandwidth and fast.
Or we will have to accept bandwidth limits to keep the playing field fair for everyone. I think one thing that could work is to open bandwidth up late at night to early AM when usage is down. This would benefit all and would keep customers happy.

Chaos Motor said 7:02PM on 1-09-2008

"If you are a company and you're going to filter network traffic, be transparent and disclose it up front."

No, DON'T DO IT. People pay for ACCESS, that's IT. They don't pay for the gatekeeper to decide what does and doesn't go through. In fact, fuck the gatekeeper. Read my entry at
http://chaosmotor.wordpress.com/2008/01/08/services-middlemen-and-gatekeepers/
for more on gatekeepers and what I'm doing to eliminate this scourge.

frank peter said 7:22PM on 1-09-2008

Shit, I never though comcast could close down as well, There was the funniest joke about comcast the other day, www.opentopix.com/topic/tech-news/comcast-to-close-down

xxx said 7:53PM on 1-09-2008

That's a LOT of moneyyyy!!! too much I think
http://www.spymac.com/details/?2330673

chris said 2:51AM on 1-10-2008

What you may be overlooking so people will open this article, is that of the 9.1 million subscribers, how many were truly troubled by this. I work for the company in question and I am well aware of how many people actually called about this in my market. The truth is, not many.

Greenman said 6:14PM on 1-10-2008

It comes down to this: Is access to the net a privilege or a right? Those of us who believe it is a right look towards history and rulings regarding similar "common carrier" services.
http://www.artsandmedia.net/cgi-bin/dc/newsdesk/2003/12/02_net_neutrality
Just because someone doesn't know the protocol is available doesn't make it right to limit it. If we let the camel put its nose in the tent, it won't be long before the camel owns the tent. This 'camel' is meant to serve the needs of society - to build community - not to serve the needs of the camel.

Jay said 9:22AM on 1-10-2008

...how about fining them for anti-trust violations? Comcast-ick.

Greenman said 5:55PM on 1-10-2008

Charter has been throttling torrent traffic too - and poorly. I've got several versions of linux that I'm interested in. If I'm on bittorrent for more than an hour, web traffic slows to worse-than-dialup for everyone behind my router. Turn off bittorrent, and about half a day later, speeds pick up.

Mr. Martin needs to fine Charter too. It's just rude to think we won't realize what's happening.

Shannon said 6:54PM on 1-10-2008

I had no idea. I'm canceling my Comcast service. Does anybody know of a list of ISPs who have a clean record?

Cozmo said 2:07AM on 1-13-2008

Well I think that sounds a bit steep for a fine, but I do hope something is done about it.

Steve said 9:20PM on 1-13-2008

Really, Snipes? Take a look at your local streetcorner or highway, Snipes. This should not surprise you..as the U.K. IS NO LONGER A FREE COUNTRY..AND THE U.K.'s VOTERS ALLOWED THIS!!

Billie said 4:05AM on 1-14-2008

Comcast is also spying on people mail and what they dl. This is a fact!

Dani said 12:41PM on 1-14-2008

I agree with Andrew. For those of you who are not in "the know" of what is going on with Comcast let me assure you that there are faster speeds that will be available in the very near future. Comcast is working out solutions to this problem, not adding to it.

The fact of the matter is that you are getting what you pay for. If you want FiOS, then get it, but their speed (for the same price as comcast's 6Mb) is only 5Mb...so have fun trying to download with that. They don't even have a power boost...it just is what it is. You want more? You will pay more. Oh, and let me remind you....You're internet will only be as fast as your modem/gateway/router/computer can process ....so maybe it's time for you to make some updates yourself.

I'm glad that there is probably some throttling going on. Why should I get less because some JA next door has some huge file to download. I think it's fair this way.

Oh, and about that lock box on the side of the building....If jerks weren't constantly busting these open to try and steal cable, then maybe the cover would stay up. It wouldn't hurt you to try and close it up either you know...It's not that hard, I promise you wont break a nail =)

cableGUY said 2:19PM on 2-26-2008

the people that think comcast is crazy for throttleing bit torrent users are crazy themselves. i cant wait untill isp's here in america start to charge by the kilobyte then we will see how much of you bit torrent morons download. There has to be some kind of regulations otherwise these morons would bog the network down and make my online game play lagg that would be great wouldnt it, becuase some idiot is trying to download 5 different movies from some bit torrent f-off already.

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