BitTorrent Inc. + Comcast = Love, Peace, Harmony…Not!
Written by enigmax on March 29, 2008When Robb Topolski made the initial discovery that Comcast was interfering with BitTorrent traffic, he couldn’t have imagined that it would lead to an FCC hearing or, more importantly, to apparent reconciliation this week between Comcast and the rest of the world. Thing is, Robb doesn’t believe a word of it.
Ever since the news broke that Comcast had been using ‘hacker-like’ techniques to hamper BitTorrent traffic, Comcast’s name has been dragged through the mud, with claim after claim of dirty tricks, lies, half-truths and strategic omission. It seems that nothing could go right for the company. Until this week, that is.
Apparently, everything in the Comcast garden is rosy these days, with previous arch-rival BitTorrent now working things out together over afternoon tea. However, not everyone is celebrating.
In 2007, Robb Topolski discovered and documented the Comcast interference, informed TorrentFreak and we published an article which ignited the whole debate. It’s safe to say, he’s been following this one closely.
Here are his thoughts on the Comcast / BitTorrent reconciliation:
—–
I’m probably a key figure as to why we’re all talking about Network Neutrality again. I was having a problem uploading on Gnutella in early 2007. I tracked it down to Comcast using Sandvine-injected RST packets. Blog stories led to press stories which led to independent confirmation. And here we are today. Peace and harmony? Probably not.
Today Comcast and BitTorrent seems to have solved world hunger — and I’d love nothing more than to be optimistic about it. But I cannot be. As they say on Slashdot — show video, or it didn’t happen. This deal is treachery, relies on how much we can trust the word of Comcast, and leaves the public interests out in the cold.
I think it’s strange that anyone believes a word that Comcast says. This is the Comcast that:
1. Told the FCC in 2005 that they would not degrade traffic in order to convince the FCC that network neutrality regulations were not needed.
2. Started degrading P2P traffic the very next year, and failed to tell anyone what they were doing.
3. Used a system that utilized forgery, and successfully placed blame on the other peer instead of Comcast.
4. Denied it when caught.
5. Then changed their story when the denials were not believed, but still never came out and said what they were doing.
6. Then they justified their actions by throwing their other Cable-Internet brothers and sisters under the bus with their “they do it too!” defense
7. Then stealthily changed the AUP days before an FCC filing where they referred to the new provisions.
8. When the changed AUP started getting press attention, they stated that a prominent story on Comcast.net alerted millions of visitors of the change and accused Marvin Ammori of crying wolf. (Google cache proved that nothing alerted users to the changed AUP until the day after the press started asking questions.)
9. Then they packed the Harvard FCC hearing.
This company has not demonstrated that you can trust its promises, nor can you believe its assertions. Comcast just used BitTorrent Inc. as a tool to try and defang the FCC.
BitTorrent Inc. is a content provider. Vuze, who actually DID make a complaint and petition to the FCC, is a competitor. Neither BitTorrent, Vuze, nor Comcast represents the interests of 12 million Comcast users nor the The Internet Society nor the public. And this middle-of-the-night deal was made without their input.
Nothing has changed. The RST interference continues. It was a wrongful act. BitTorrent Inc. has no right making a deal with Comcast allowing it to continue to commit wrongful acts until it finally decides it is ready to stop. The correct relief is to stop the interference immediately and to FULLY DISCLOSE what it did and to accept responsibility for those actions. (Even today, Comcast’s Policy VP refused to answer questions about the interference.)
Their word is worthless. Until the interference stops, I have no reason to believe it will. Until either meaningful competition returns to broadband, or until sufficient government regulation enforces Network Neutrality, we have no reason to think that this agreement will last through the night.
Robb Topolski
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TorrentFreak confronted Ashwin Navin of BitTorrent Inc. with Robb’s comments, and he told us: “We decided to collaborate with Comcast because they agreed to stop using RSTs, increase upload capacity, and evaluate network hardware that accelerates media delivery and file transfers. We’re at the beginning of the formal collaboration, but Robb’s work was instrumental to identify the offending practice. We need him and the community to keep an eye on ISPs across the world.”
“Our work with Comcast will benefit all P2P development because Comcast has agreed to manage traffic at Layer 3 (the network layer) rather than Layers 4-7 (the protocol/application layers). This is a core component of the neutrality debate,” he added.
As always, time will tell…
Previously: Norwegian ISPs Refuse MPAA’s Request to Disconnect Pirates
Next: Ridiculously Useless Bittorrent Software
62 Responses
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@#3
It’s the same where I live(Chicago). You have Giant Corporate liars in Comcast with generally fast service or Giant Corporate liars in AT&T with slower service. Your choice.
Also I have not any seen interference at all here in the midwest. I suspect they were testing it where traffic was highest. East coast\West coast.
Comcast is only as evil as all the other corporate companies. Obviously they are trying to maximise profit, using marketing campaigns that sail very close to the wind of advertising regulations. They are perfectly entitled to charge extra for “excessive” bandwidth use, provided their adverts and AUP say so.
If they’ve advertised “unthrottled and unlimited bandwidth”, then complain to the agency that governs advertising standards.
The throttling might not ever stop, but if it’s written into the contracts of subscribers, at least it is legal. We just have to keep an eye on the companies that do it without warning. If you truly want “unlimited bandwidth” and no traffic-shaping, you’re going have to pay extra. I’d advise going to another ISP if possible. Competition in the marketplace can only work if customers actually change to different suppliers instead of just complaining about they ones they pay.
@#27 (ArtyTorrent)
No, they’re (Comcast) a monopoly. Not all corporate/Fortune 500 companies are. Most (well a semi-significant number) have competition. Your only other option for cable TV, in North America, is satellite. And that’s assuming you live somewhere that faces the right direction etc. And your only other option for broadband is DSL, and that’s assuming you live within a certain distance of a plant.
You even said “go to another ISP, if possible”. In a lot of cases, it’s not possible. Until cable companies are forced to share their lines with other companies (a la Ma Bell), we’re fucked. And through various PACs, Comcast (and Time Warner, Cox, Rogers and Shaw) own the FCC. And by own I mean own.
Thanks for fighting for us Robb! Sincerely. :D
Fact is, Comcast have lied, and continued to lie and cover up the fact they are messing with bandwith, and couldn’t care less for the FCC
http://www.fileprompt.com
@19 “Former Employee” –
Thanks for the story. Their behavior matches exactly the corporate culture that you describe.
You’re not the first person to tell me about this part: “…a system that monitors your bandwidth usage, and when you hit a certain amount (like say oh 60GB per month) you’ll be put into a walled garden (ie. can’t surf the internet you can only view one page). That one page will display this: You’ve run out of bandwidth. If you’d like to buy more…”
The sad thing is that smart executives and career-minded employees avoid poisonous companies like Comcast. They leave, usually quickly. And they talk.
This has been a boon for Comcast’s opposition.
And the ones that don’t quit are rather quickly neutered. I noticed that we haven’t heard from Mr. “We Don’t Throttle” (Comcast PR-man Charlie Douglas) for several months. He reappeared from the dead on Thursday. Demonstrating, once again, Thursday’s BitTorrent announcement was all about fixing their PR problem.
@19 “Former Employee” — you’re awesome! Thanks!
I have Comcast as it’s really my only option since I moved recently. I have yet to notice any changes since their announcement. i did think I could actually get a worse service than Charter but Comcast is worse by far.
Someone’s been posting this huge list of trackers on digg comments. Turns out they’re pretty useful and the biggest list of this kind I’ve seen yet:
http://singularweb.blogspot.com/2008/03/list-of-public-and-private-bittorrent.html
Anyone know any other lists like this?
@#23 you can buy your own cable modem I had one from d-link so they can’t say they own it becuase I bought it from best buy not them. So how could they use that reason if you can buy your own modem? They more then likely will though I had good service from them but when I had to move they tried to say I two more cable boxes then my bill said and tried to charge me for a modem to.
Comcast are clueless. Check this out:
Their VP at a trade conference announced he was going to put cameras inside their set top boxes so he could see who is watching shows. Comcast is truly run by idiots: http://weblog.infoworld.com/robertxcringely/archives/2008/03/geek_week_evoti.html
and I thought things were bad ,here in India,
our ISP’s actively throttle speeds but never overcharge us, anyways its on 9$ for 2 mbps so who’d complain ?
Robb speaks the truth. These scum are not trustworthy.
In the city where comcast started, they screwed everybody over by offering non-digital cable and then moving the channels around so that you only get 15 channels that aren’t local infomercials. The city won’t make Comcast sign a contract and won’t hear offers from other cable companies. It’s either comcast or AT&T and they both suck. Of course, they are still doing the RST bullcrap here and I’m not even getting enough of “the stream,” as they refer to it(the onsite comcast techs don’t even know what packets are or what TCP is), to make two boxes be able to access the guide.
May that miserable corp be eaten alive by cellphone networks!
i took training to be a comcast rep once and i can see how people can get this idea that there lieing to you somehow but read your contract im willing to bet there is a clause makeing a vague refrence to an undesclosed amount of bandwith alotted for customers to ensure fair use of bandwith at all times for its other users. if you exceed the alloted amount and your the only one on your node there not going to give a crap as long as your not preventing another paying customer of there service.
that being said i hate them as much as you all but they just prey on us addicts of the internet who need are files faster =(
I left comcast for “slower” DSL and I am more satisfied with my consistently predictable download speeds than I was with the very frequent dns/connection/intermitancy problems that I experienced with comcast. Dump them.
we love all our customers
Bell Canada is doing the same thing as comcast and yesterday their PR spokesman was caught calling journalists “lemmings” on his facebook profile. Read all about it here:
http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r20247550-Jason-Laszlo-Bell-spokesmans-real-thoughts-on-this-issue
Oh noes! I can’t get my stolen shit anymore!
Wonder how many of the people who think this is ok would be happy with others using their wife for sex? After all nothing is being stolen.
@post 19
What you said lines up exactly with Ashwin’s comments
““Our work with Comcast will benefit all P2P development because Comcast has agreed to manage traffic at Layer 3 (the network layer) rather than Layers 4-7 (the protocol/application layers). This is a core component of the neutrality debate,” he added.”
They are moving management to level 3 of the OSI model, the network layer which consists of routers. Apparently they will stop stop the packet inspection (upper layers), and simply focus on total bw (router level).
ahhh, the old “NOT!” joke, nice.
lets set an emp off in the comcast building
Another little Comcast blocking others tidbit:
I am supposed to receive email notifications called “Jackpot Alerts” from the State of Michigan Lottery. Well, I haven’t received any in a while and when I inquired about it via the “Player City” portal of the SOM Lottery site, it stated that Comcast is actually blocking those emails!!!
The site stated they were working to resolve the issue.
Hope Verizon or ATT come into our area soon!
Comcast (after nuking my current ISP, tookever) just recently said they increased line speed from 10 to 12Mbit in this area. I don’t know if upload speed changed at all I will have to check in detail. I also have not been throttled as much as in recent history but they might just be scaling back as this area is not high in population or file sharers it seems.
It blows to have comcast as your only real fast high speed ISP but surewest is stepping up in my area and is now running fiber optics by by comcrap.
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