Non-neutral-net and the China Syndrome

Readers of this column have heard me pontificate before that the 'all you can eat buffet model' (aka The Internet "Cloud") is unsustainable.  Flat-pricing models (the ones we're all used to when it comes to bandwidth) are unsustainable over the long run, because 'cost' can't be distributed efficiently enough.

 

Unlike other flat, per monthly fees (say a bus pass or a gym membership), bandwidth outliers can use thousands of times more capacity than the model, casual user.   So, what's a carrier to do? 

 

1- Do they charge each other - effectively bringing intercarrier compensation to IP packets?

2- Do they implement 'tiered' services for the end-user?

 

… or, hot off the press this morning …

 

3- Do they selectively block high-bandwidth services such as BitTorrent and other file 'sharing' applications?

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071019/ap_on_hi_te/comcast_data_discrimination_2

 

Some new evidence that ISPs, in this case, Comcast are opting for number 3.  By blocking access to the bandwidth 'hogs', they ensure better service (and less CAPEX) to maintain the all-you-can-eat-flat-pricing. 

 

But that hardly seems a lasting solution, especially given the bad press that will come of this.