It seems Google has chosen a side in the debate over an Internet fast lane.
While the search giant doesn’t name any names in a recent blog post, it clearly has sided with content providers to fight against paid peering â€" the practice in which ISPs charge those providers a premium for a direct interconnection with their networks.
“Video traffic doesn’t bog down or change the way we manage our network in any meaningful wayâ€"so why not help enable it," said Jeffrey Burgan, Google'd director of network engineering.
It’s probably fair to assume this is a shot at Comcast specifically, which made headlines last month for cutting a deal with Netflix for paid peering.
Google sees free peering as win-win: it’s cheaper for companies like Netflix and cheaper for ISPs like Google because they don’t have to hook up to distant servers to deliver Netflix video content.
But as a content provider, Google also stands to save money using this model. Streaming Media Blog points out that Google currently pays for peering across many of the big ISPs itself.
Google’s post comes after a 3-2 FCC vote to move forward on proposed legislation that could allow ISPs to cut deals with content providers for paid traffic prioritization. Peering is considered to fall outside of these regulations.
The FCC will keep taking public comments on the measure through July 15.
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