Comcast really does block BitTorrent traffic after all | The Iconoclast - politics, law, and technology - CNET News.com
Here is another example of the fallacy of “The Internet” as a single entity. In many ways the Internet is like a hologram. What you see depends on where you are. Many web sites will charge higher prices to you if you are coming from certain countries or certain zip codes. In this case, certain kinds of communications simply don’t work if you are a Comcast customer.
The problem here is really informed consent, or false advertising. Users of Comcast reasonably assume that if they buy an “Internet” connection, they will get a connection to “the Internet”. I think most reasonable people would assume this to include the use of any Internet applications or protocols which are not behaving in an illegal or abusive way. Comcast has been very closed mouthed about their actual policies for what and when they block access to services or content.
The fact that competition for broadband in many markets is more theoretical than real makes this particularly concerning.
- Lance Cottrell
October 28th, 2007 at 1:25 pm
Just to play the devil’s advocate, a case could be made for Comcast assuming that BitTorrent traffic is both illegal (because while there are myriad legitimate uses it is often used to download copyrighted video and audio files) and abusive (because it consumes the lion’s share of Internet traffic).
October 31st, 2007 at 10:37 am
There is a way around this. What Comcast is actually blocking is Bit Torrent SEEDING. All you have to do is set your client to encrypt your outgoing Bit Torrent traffic and the problem goes away.