On Wednesday we reported that the ISP Comcast had set up a proposal for a new traffic 'throttling' system in which the heaviest users would see their top speeds reduced for periods lasting up to 20 minutes at a time.
Today however, Comcast has responded by saying they have yet to make a final decision on how they will manage network congestion from here on in.
The ISP has been under scrutiny since it was revealed they had throttled traffic speeds of BitTorrent and other P2P users without telling customers they were doing so. The case went to the FCC which found Comcast guilty of breaking net neutrality laws. The ISP now needs to set up a new traffic management plan and submit it to the FCC before the end of the year.
The main proposal has been that of slowing the Internet of heavier users at times of congestion, which it claims will keep the "service" flowing for all customers. "It's the heaviest of users that are directly contributing to the degradation of the service for the other people on the network," said Charlie Douglas, a Comcast spokesman.
Ben Scott, Free Press (digital rights advocacy group) policy director said that Comcast has been dishonest in the past and now users must be suspicious of any new traffic management plan.
"We have to be skeptical and vigilant," Scott said. "The FCC has required them to disclose all the details so we look forward to seeing that before we can fully evaluate. Any move that doesn't involve blocking consumers' access to the Internet is a positive step but we won't know for sure about this particular practice until we see the details."
The ISP has been under scrutiny since it was revealed they had throttled traffic speeds of BitTorrent and other P2P users without telling customers they were doing so. The case went to the FCC which found Comcast guilty of breaking net neutrality laws. The ISP now needs to set up a new traffic management plan and submit it to the FCC before the end of the year.
The main proposal has been that of slowing the Internet of heavier users at times of congestion, which it claims will keep the "service" flowing for all customers. "It's the heaviest of users that are directly contributing to the degradation of the service for the other people on the network," said Charlie Douglas, a Comcast spokesman.
Ben Scott, Free Press (digital rights advocacy group) policy director said that Comcast has been dishonest in the past and now users must be suspicious of any new traffic management plan.
"We have to be skeptical and vigilant," Scott said. "The FCC has required them to disclose all the details so we look forward to seeing that before we can fully evaluate. Any move that doesn't involve blocking consumers' access to the Internet is a positive step but we won't know for sure about this particular practice until we see the details."
