A new report out of the SeaBoard Group suggests that the rhetoric out of many in the net neutrality camp is sensationalistic and unhelpful for the future health of the internet:
Treating the Internet as some sort of pastoral elysium rather than a tool to be managed and used, we argue, would have dire consequences for the future health of the Internet should legislators/regulators attempt to embrace these misguided notions.
The SeaBoard report dispels what it calls a faulty romanticized version of the internet, saying that such a vision is based on false precepts. Further, SeaBoard says that net neutrality regulations would “impede the growth, potency and relevance of the Internet in the future.”
Sandvine released its latest study [Exec Summary pdf] that analyzes global broadband trends. The report finds:
- Online entertainment-based applications such as gaming, video streaming, social networking and VoIP communications dominate peak evening hours between 6:00 and 11:00 p.m.
- Peer-to-peer (P2P) traffic remains dominant in the upstream direction totaling 61 per cent of network traffic and is also responsible for more than 22 per cent of downstream bandwidth consumption worldwide
- web traffic and streaming videos account for 59 per cent of downstream bandwidth consumption.
Sandvine president Dave Caputo notes that P2P bulk file transfer applications unaffected by changes to network utilization, contrasted with real-time applications that are sensitive to jitter and latency during times of peak usage. Sandvine advocates network traffic optimization techniques that balance network capacity, application requirements and subscriber quality of experience in real-time.
If the CRTC or Canada’s 40th Parliament addresses net neutrality, will they adopt the language of the Telecom Policy Review Panel?