[ NNSquad ] Network Management by Telecom Italia

[Stefano Quintarelli <stefano@quintarelli.it>]

Dear all,

Telecom Italia starts "experimental" network management in Italy on
fixed network, degrading applications bandwidth hungry (e.g. P2P)
ensuring "enough bandwidth" for "real time and near-realtime
applications (e.g. browsing, email, ..)"

(e-mail near real time ???)

Italy's ISPs Association files a complaint to the communications
authority which asks for information to Telecom Italia (leaked document
attached)

TI has declared to a newspaper that they are not managing traffic on the
access portion but rather "before the Internet" [gateways] filtering
based on packet headers. http://www.aiip.it/page.php?id=952

now, TI, being an incumbent, has an obbligation of providing wholsale
IP-based bitstream access (and they do).

AFAIK, if the network management is done on *all* traffic (on any
portion of the network from access to backhauling), this implies that
also the traffic of competitors (who buy wholesale from TI) is managed,
BUT TI HAS NEVER NOTIFIED THE COMPETITORS. (Let alone notify the
communications authority who didn't know of this management as it is
evident from their request for information to TI)

it would seem extremely strange to me if the network management is done
at the IP level ONLY on TI's customers traffic (which TI notified only
with a popup on theirs assistance website  http://bit.ly/cYLYjd), as it
either would affect competitors' traffic as well or would benefit users
of TI's competitors

ciao, s.
-- 
blog.quintarelli.it
www.eximia.it
www.reeplay.it

Attachment: Aiip_Sperimentazione di tecniche di network management di TI.doc
Description: MS-Word document