[LINK] Australia - no net neutrality here.

[Kim Holburn]

Of course the other way big media distributors can stop pirates is to  
team up with ISPs in Australia and force severe bandwidth caps so  
downloading gets prohibitively expensive.  Then peer with content  
purveyors to allow particular allowed content for free.   I had  
forgotten I started using broadband here again just how severe  
download caps are in Australia.  Now they seem to add downloads and  
uploads into the cap.

http://arstechnica.com/telecom/news/2010/02/australias-internet-non-neutral-and-proud-of-it.ars
> Australia's Internet: nonneutral and proud of it

...

> But lost in most of the discussion of the ruling is another hot  
> topic, net neutrality. If you want a good look at what a non-neutral  
> 'Net looks like, take a gander at Australia.
>
> The judge's ruling discussed the business practices of Australia's  
> third-largest ISP, iiNet, and in doing so reminded non-Aussie  
> readers about a defining feature of Internet life Down Under:  
> bandwidth caps. Such caps are common around the world, but  
> Australian ISPs take the idea one step further by setting up  
> partnerships with entertainment services and music download  
> companies. Any data usage directed at one of these favored services  
> doesn't count against the monthly bandwidth cap.
>

....

> Network nonneutrality
> This is quite clearly nonneutral behavior in any sense of the term.  
> ISPs like iiNet shape traffic when the quota is reached, meaning  
> that all traffic to nonpartner sites is slowed dramatically, while  
> the favored services continue at full speed. This isn't an outright  
> "blocking" of other websites, which can be freely accessed until the  
> cap is reached, but the effect is quite similar. How are high- 
> bandwidth services like video streaming going to compete against  
> those services favored by an ISP? How will new players ever gain  
> market share?
>






-- 
Kim Holburn
IT Network & Security Consultant
T: +61 2 61402408  M: +61 404072753
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