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IPFS News Link • Internet

What if You Could Build Your Own Internet Fast Lanes?

• https://www.wired.com

Internet fast lanes aren't something everyone can agree on.

Some people believe they are evil. They embrace an elusive concept called network neutrality, and don't want Internet providers like Comcast and Verizon giving preferential treatment to the likes of YouTube or Spotify. That, they say, will stifle innovation and concentrate power in the hands a few very rich companies. Lawmakers so often take their side.

But others—Comcast and Verzion, for example—see no problem with fast lanes. It is how the Internet works, they say. Internet providers must prioritize some traffic to keep things running smoothly. The way the providers see it, they're spending the money to build and run the world's Internet connections, and must make it economically viable.

In fact, some wireless operators already do this. Though a program called Binge On, T-Mobile lets customers stream as much video as they like from a variety of services without having it count toward their data cap, but all those services will be slower than usual. It also offers Music Freedom, which exempts dozens of streaming music services from data caps–a practice known as "zero rating." Both of these programs are a fast lane—or at least a free lane in a world of toll roads.

The argument has gone on for years, in the press, at the FCC, and within the courts without even the hint of a good solution. A team of Stanford University engineering professors offers a path forward with technology that lets you to create your own fast lanes.


www.universityofreason.com/a/29887/KWADzukm