Apple is against Net Neutrality with Comcast

Hardware Hub Tech Policy & News
1

I was surprised to see that Apple, a major tech company that has benefited greatly from an open internet, is now pursuing a deal with Comcast that appears to violate Net Neutrality:

"Under the plan Apple proposed to Comcast, Apple's video streams would be treated as a 'managed service' traveling in Internet protocol format—similar to cable video-on-demand or phone service," the Journal wrote. "Those services travel on a special portion of the cable pipe that is separate from the more congested portion reserved for public Internet access."

Source: http://arstechnica.com/business/2014/03/apple-wants-its-own-path-on-comcast-network-for-video-service-wsj-says/

2

Um... I don't get why this surprises you. It's Apple. One of the biggest patent trolls known to man.

3

True they are patent trolls, but net neutrality is a different issue. I figured the violations would first come from Comcast trying to prioritize its own content.

If this deal is true Apple is an even worse company than I thought, this is basically them saying we don't give a shit about the internet. I hope the average apple buyer catches on to what is going on here.

4

I will preface my statements by saying I am a big user of OS X and have used it almost exclusively at home since it was released in 2001.

This should not be surprising.  This is Apple's modus operandi, they embrace things until they do not see a major advantage to it, then they do not just deemphasize it, they do a 180 degree hard turn against it.

In 2001, when they first released OS X Apple went through great pains to ensure Java executed extremely fast.  It had fairly deep integration into the OS, and would actually run Java applications even faster than Solaris, given the same resources, which was almost unbelievable. 

At that point, their strategy was to appeal to Java developers to be a development platform and attempt to take over web companies data centers with their Xserves--most major web companies run large amounts of server side Java.

Well, most of you probably have never heard of an Xserve, so you know how successful that was.  And they dropped Java as a preferred software package within OS X starting in OS X 10.5, and Java is not even installed by default starting with OS X 10.6.

When OS X first came out they wanted to appeal to developers, so they made the OS very developer friendly, but then they did another 180 degree turn and now each new release of OS X becomes less and less geared towards developers.

The funny thing is OS X did make significant inroads as a developers' platform.  At Google, unless you are doing Windows specific development, your desktop machine is either OS X or Linux.  Many Startups in Silicon Valley standardized on Macs.  At JavaOne, nearly all of the presentations are made with Macs.

This is one of the biggest problems with apple.  They will embrace something until they no longer see it as part of their core business and rather than put it on the back burner, they completely turn their back on it.  Leaving anyone who uses whatever they no longer view as valuable to twist in the wind.  Just ask the graphic designers what it was like when OS X was first released and they were left in the lurch.

5

This honestly does not surprise me in the slightest. For me I see is as this, Apple will back anything they can that has the opportunity of extorting more money from users than they already do. In this case net neutrality stands to lose them money, or at least not gain them any more than they are already getting. If people have freedom they have choice, choice to go to some other service/platform/store than Apple provide. This is all potential money out of their pockets, deep as they are.

The thing that scares me right now is the thinking. To paraphrase The Tek, Apple does not look at what the users want, they force what they think you need upon you and make you want it. I am just waiting for the fanbois to come out of the woodwork in support of closing down the Internet in support of Apple.

The hardcore, legitimate mac uses will be as level and chock full of common sense as any others but unfortunately it is the sheep who make the most noise and buy the most products. They have a very real possibility of being convinced that a multi-tier Internet is a good thing and then spreading the word as if it were law.

I do exaggerate a lot but worryingly this is something I can see happening.

6

I concur, we are quickly approaching the point where the internet will become tiered; there will be the premium internet that the big incumbent companies pay to get their services/content across, and the normal internet where innovation will be stifled due to antiquated broadband infrastructure.

Net Neutrality is failing.

7

The Apple of 2005 was very different that the current Apple. The new fuckers at Apple want to shove DRM into everything, build shit mobile devices, and copy everyone. In '05, Apple actually innovated.

8

Here's the part that'll really cook your noodle. So Netflix AND Apple are paying for internal upgrades of Comcast. If Data is Data (and it is!) doesn't that mean they get double the internal upgrades to their network? Do you think that people will be, on the whole, streaming both Netflix and Apple at the same time? Do you think that Comcast will be a good guy, and split that cost down the middle? Nope-- and this is exactly the type of thing that's opening doors to allow comcast and other ISPs to "oversell" their connections to other commercial entities. 

When Apple and Netflix bought connectivity from a provider like L3, who provides connectivity to ISPs -- it's pay per capacity not pay per usage. So the ISP has the "capacity" to support both services, at peak demand. The ISPs customers are requesting data, and that data requires network capacity to deliver. 

So Netflix paying Comcast to upgrade their infrastructure must also benefit Netflixs' competitiors, because data is data. 

In my mind this is even clearer evidence that Comcast is up to no good because services that compete with one another aren't likely to mean that the consumer doubles up on traffic. They use one or the other, or one at a time. Clear evidence their customers are being held hostage, and aren't even aware.

 

 

 


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9

There are some people I know who are indoctrinated apple zombies but truth be told I am not a bit surprised by this, and the people who said I should be surprised couldn't give me a valid reason why I should be surprised instead you yelled the usual "Because It's Apple!" or as we pronounce it in my country "uh-pell"