NetFlix UK peaktime streaming chart for August 2015 3-4Mbps

"The Netflix ISP Speed Index is a measure of prime time Netflix performance on particular ISPs (internet service providers) around the globe, and not a measure of overall performance for other services/data that may travel across the specific ISP network."

'via Blog this'

FCC Approval Of Zero Rating Shows Companies Can Still Violate Neutrality

From March 6 - Karl Bode nails it: FCC Approval Of Zero Rating Shows Companies Can Still Violate Neutrality Under New Rules, They Just Have To Be More Clever About It | Techdirt: "My guess is that the FCC is going to be so busy trying to appease all of the folks fanning their faces over "heavy handed government regulation," that it will probably give ample leeway to services like this. And that's a problem. As I've noted a few times, AT&T, Verizon and Comcast are smart enough to avoid ham-fisted neutrality abuses like outright blocking or throttling services, and U.S. telecom regulators have already shown they're perfectly ok with all manner of anti-competitive behavior -- provided you pony up a half-assed technical justification for plausible deniability. " 'via Blog this'

£50m BT Plan to Upgrade Broadband in 30 Cities Starts in London

UPDATE £50m BT Plan to Upgrade Broadband in 30 Cities Starts in London - ISPreview UK: "The good news is that the first 30,503 homes and businesses of the 400,000 goal have today been announced and few will be surprised to learn that they’re all in London. Over the next two years some 20,213 are expected to benefit in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (total coverage of 80,000 premises in the borough), while another 10,290 will benefit in Greenwich (total coverage of 100,000 premises in the borough).

 BT claims that its full roll-out will increase overall fibre availability across London, pushing upwards from around 90% to roughly 95% of premises (Openreach’s network alone will hit 90% in two years, while the remainder will be covered by alternative networks like Virgin Media). It should be said that Virgin Media also overlaps with a lot of BT’s urban network." 'via Blog this'

Statement by Commissioner Vestager on Telenor/TeliaSonera failed merger

European Commission - PRESS RELEASES - Press release - Statement by Commissioner Vestager on announcement by Telenor and TeliaSonera to withdraw from proposed merger: "The European Commission takes note of Telenor and TeliaSonera's announcement this morning that they are abandoning the proposed merger of their respective business units in Denmark. The Commission confirms that the discussions with the parties thus far were not able to fully address the Commission's competition concerns created by the proposed merger. The Commission had opened an in-depth investigation on 8 April 2015.

Commissioner Margrethe Vestager in charge of competition policy said: "EU merger control has to make sure that company tie-ups do not lead to reduced innovation, higher prices or reduced choice for consumers and do not restrict competition in the internal market.
I believe that ensuring that markets are competitive is key both to spur much needed innovation and investment in European telecoms markets, as well as to offer affordable prices to consumers.
Every case has to be assessed on its own facts and merits. In this specific case, based on the Commission's in-depth analysis and evidence gathered, we are convinced that the significant competition concerns required an equally significant remedy. This means the creation of a fourth mobile network operator.  What the parties offered was not sufficient to avoid harm to competition in Danish mobile markets."
 
STATEMENT/15/5627" 'via Blog this'

DOCSIS3 in UK: Virgin Media speed tests confirm upload boost

Virgin Media speed tests confirm upload boost: "Last month, it was revealed that around 90% of Virgin Media's four million UK customers will see faster download speeds from October 1st, with the remaining 10% of broadband subscribers set to benefit in early 2016.

Now, it looks like upload speeds will follow suit, with those on the current package of 50Mbps seeing uploads double from 3Mbps to 6Mbps. That's alongside a boost in download speeds to 100Mbps.

Meanwhile, customers on the 100Mbps package, whose download speeds will likely rise to 200Mbps, will see uploads move from 6Mbps to 12Mbps, and those on the 152Mbps package will see their upload speeds move from 12Mbps to 20Mbps. Their download speed after the boost is expected to hit 300Mbps." 'via Blog this'

If you only read one article on empirical analysis of net neutrality, read Brown & Cooper

Net Neutrality: "We analyze UK and US experiences as they relate to two central net neutrality questions: (1) whether competition serves as a deterrent to the discriminatory treatment of Internet traffic, and (2) whether discrimination creates barriers to application development and innovation. Relying on consumer switching behavior to provide more comprehensive competitive discipline was insufficient for a variety of reasons, including the presence of switching costs. The process of correcting errors in the technology used for application-specific management revealed that such management creates costs for application developers and innovators, regardless of whether their products are targeted for traffic management." 'via Blog this'

Thomas Lohninger - "Schroedinger’s net neutrality" - EParliament votes in October

#11np: Thomas Lohninger - "Schroedinger’s net neutrality" - YouTube: "In Europe all three institutions have agreed on a text for net neutrality that is a little bit like Schrodinger’s cat – it could allow protection against network discrimination or it could legalise it. So far we don’t know and even the politicians who will vote on it don’t. The text is written so badly, ambiguous and contradictory that only regulators and courts can give it real meaning in the future.

Next month the European Parliament will have to vote. This talks tries to give an understanding of where we are, how we got there and which path we have to go forward." 'via Blog this'