BellSouth Wants to Rig the Internet

PlayfullyClever writes "A senior telecommunications executive at BellSouth, said yesterday that Internet service providers should be allowed to strike deals to give certain Web sites or services priority in reaching computer users, a controversial system that would significantly change how the Internet operates. Some say Small Firms Could Be Shut Out of Market Championed by BellSouth Officer. William L. Smith, chief technology officer for Atlanta-based BellSouth Corp., told reporters and analysts that an Internet service provider such as his firm should be able, for example, to charge Yahoo Inc. for the opportunity to have its search site load faster than that of Google Inc." Next up, well dressed men go door to door collecting their monthly "protection money". 'It sure would be tragic if your users started getting 1500ms ping times, wouldn't it mister dot com?'

Comments

Enough with the strawmen

[Anonymous Coward]

Next up, well dressed men go door to door collecting their monthly "protection money". 'It sure would be tragic if your users started getting 1500ms ping times, wouldn't it mister dot com?'

Yeah, except that's not the same thing at all. ISPs are businesses that can set (almost) any conditions they want. If you don't want to do business with them, fine. The mob, on the other hand, does business with you regardless if you want to or not, and you don't come to them, they come to you.

This "new way of doing business" is bad as it is without you providing moronic strawmen, Taco. Simplistic "analysis" of that sort is almost always counterproductive, and never conductive to clear and reasoned discussion.

All this said, I think this sounds awful, and hope it doesn't ever come to pass, as it would no doubt only harm small business operators.