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Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Canadian cable broadband too slow to access net neutrality opinion

Sigh, very slow connectivity to Geist pages - server or my ISP issues? Speedtest tells me I have 600/100kbps on Videotron and 20,000/660kbps on free WiFi.

Is this the new boss, same as the old boss? ISPs can change their conditions with only 30 days' notice to retail customers (60 days wholesale).
"This has really not changed anything" said Tom Copeland, chair of the Canadian Association of Internet Providers, many of whose members buy Internet connectivity from phone or cable companies. The association complained to the CRTC last year after Bell Canada began managing traffic during peak hours to these wholesale customers, which prompted protests from subscribers that their Internet service was sometimes slow.

Copeland said the "biggest, most glaring omission" from the ruling is the lack of restraints on the time of day or how long suppliers like phone or cable companies can manipulate traffic. "So we could continue to see traffic management every day of the year," he said. "We're still not addressing the cause of the problem," he added: "Either weak points in the network, or abuse by users." Most casual users of peer-to-peer applications -- the biggest offending programs in the eyes of providers - aren't the problem, he said.However, they are being treated as if they are.

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