New deals involving Comcast and other companies could have an impact on the quality, content and price of your Internet service. If its merger with Time Warner Cable goes through, Comcast will be the dominant provider of broadband in the United States. The powerhouse content provider Netflix, so popular that it consumes something like 30% of all broadband action during evening hours, has already agreed to pay Comcast to guarantee quality service, and nobody knows who might be next. It's a deal that's being called a major game changer when it comes to Internet service, content and cost to consumers. Will Comcast be able to dictate what finally reaches millions of users? Will creative competitors have a chance? Will consumers pay more and get less?
Comcast and the Internet's Future
More
- Blum's 'Tubes; A Journey to the Center of the Internet'
- Decision on Verizon v. the FCC ('TtP' feature)
- Economist on Comcast and Time Warner Cable
- Economist on Netflix-Comcast deal
- Public Knowledge concerns over Netflix/Comcast agreement
- Public Knowledge on net neutrality
- The Fight over Net Neutrality ('TtP' discussion)
Credits
Guests:
- Glenn Fleishman - Economist magazine - @glennf
- Michael Weinberg - Public Knowledge - @mweinbergPK
- Andrew Blum - author of “The Weather Machine” and “Tubes” - @ajblum
- Kevin Werbach - University of Pennsylvania - @kwerb