Monty Solomon posted:
https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2019/04/cox-internet-now-charges-15-extra-for-faster-access-to-online-game-servers/
This service bypasses the public Internet, it seems, to provide gamers lower
latency. The question is whether Cox is violating any (wishful thinking)
telecom neutrality principles.
The answer or clearly no, and the reason is very simple. This is all the
explanation needed:
"Dubbed 'Cox Elite Gamer,' the service is a Cox-branded version of Wtfast,
which can alternatively be purchased directly from Wtfast and used with other
ISPs. Cox says the service 'routes your game activity through a dedicated
gaming network to provide a reduced latency path between your computer and the
game servers of select online games.'"
Net neutrality would definitely have been violated, assuming we still had a
guarantee, only if customers were forced to pay Cox for access to the bypass
network. As long as people can access Wtfast directly, via Cox broadband
service, without having to pay Cox for the privilege, all's good.
Exactly the same situation as Comcast offering Netflix as part of its legacy
MVPD lineup, on their proprietary STBs. As long as Netflix is also available to
Comcast customers direct from Netflix, net neutrality is retained. Nice to see
everyone behaving so well!
Bert
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