5 ms·

I'm going to go with customers being mad with who they send a big check to every month (e.g. Comcast). 99% of people only know about their ISP, not their ISP's

by jonknee 12y ago

I'm going to go with customers being mad with who they send a big check to every month (e.g. Comcast). 99% of people only know about their ISP, not their ISP's providers.

Jtsummers 12y ago
Not a big check, but they'd also be frustrated with Netflix/Hulu/Amazon Prime whom they also send money to each month (or year). The average customer wouldn't understand that it's the middleman causing problems, not one of the two endpoints (service provider or content provider).
- jonknee 12y ago
  I guess that depends on the number of participating Tier-1 providers that pull the plug, if enough did it would be very obvious it wasn't Netflix with the issue because everything would grind to a crawl.
- jimbokun 12y ago
  If ABC has a blank channel, but you can still watch CBS and NBC and ESPN just fine, the average consumer will assume the problem is with ABC. If all the channels are blank, the average consumer will blame the cable company. Similarly, if "the Internet is down", from the customer's perspective, they're going to blame the ISP, not Netflix/Hulu/Amazon.
  - Jtsummers 12y ago
    That's if everyone particpates on a Comcast/TWC/Cox/etc. boycott. If my parents can get to Amazon Prime but not Netflix, they'll assume the issue is Netflix. (ok, maybe not my parents, but the idealized tech-unaware parent)
    - hardoncollider 12y ago
      But with such massive depeering as this, practically all of the internet would be affected, given the amount of traffic other peers would have to pick up.
  - busterarm 12y ago
    Not true. I work for a cable/fiber ISP. Customers always blame the ISP. Even when the problem is the feed (like with CW's networks last month)...or when some dipshit construction company digs where they aren't supposed to. Luckily I don't work for one of the horrible ISPs that everyone hates, but we're definitely more in the blame-receiving business than is warranted. Folks don't understand the complexity involved in making a utility service "just work" and if the provider doesn't have hundreds of millions to invest in infrastructure (like my small provider doesn't have) it won't. The big ISPs have no excuse for not peering properly, but this is a fight they've been having with Level3 since the late 90s. Sadly they're winning.
    - singlow 12y ago
      When the customers call you, it is because they blame you. You never hear from the ones who don't blame you.
      - busterarm 12y ago
        That's not entirely true, but the majority of them do.
    - couchand 12y ago
      Wait, did you just call broadband internet a "utility"? As in a Title II utility?
      - busterarm 12y ago
        We provide phone service as well/primarily.
icebraining 12y ago
What about the CDN's customers, ie., companies with sites that their costumers couldn't access?

by jonknee 12y ago

I'm going to go with customers being mad with who they send a big check to every month (e.g. Comcast). 99% of people only know about their ISP, not their ISP's providers.

Jtsummers 12y ago

Not a big check, but they'd also be frustrated with Netflix/Hulu/Amazon Prime whom they also send money to each month (or year). The average customer wouldn't understand that it's the middleman causing problems, not one of the two endpoints (service provider or content provider).

jonknee 12y ago
I guess that depends on the number of participating Tier-1 providers that pull the plug, if enough did it would be very obvious it wasn't Netflix with the issue because everything would grind to a crawl.
jimbokun 12y ago
If ABC has a blank channel, but you can still watch CBS and NBC and ESPN just fine, the average consumer will assume the problem is with ABC. If all the channels are blank, the average consumer will blame the cable company. Similarly, if "the Internet is down", from the customer's perspective, they're going to blame the ISP, not Netflix/Hulu/Amazon.
- Jtsummers 12y ago
  That's if everyone particpates on a Comcast/TWC/Cox/etc. boycott. If my parents can get to Amazon Prime but not Netflix, they'll assume the issue is Netflix. (ok, maybe not my parents, but the idealized tech-unaware parent)
  - hardoncollider 12y ago
    But with such massive depeering as this, practically all of the internet would be affected, given the amount of traffic other peers would have to pick up.
- busterarm 12y ago
  Not true. I work for a cable/fiber ISP. Customers always blame the ISP. Even when the problem is the feed (like with CW's networks last month)...or when some dipshit construction company digs where they aren't supposed to. Luckily I don't work for one of the horrible ISPs that everyone hates, but we're definitely more in the blame-receiving business than is warranted. Folks don't understand the complexity involved in making a utility service "just work" and if the provider doesn't have hundreds of millions to invest in infrastructure (like my small provider doesn't have) it won't. The big ISPs have no excuse for not peering properly, but this is a fight they've been having with Level3 since the late 90s. Sadly they're winning.
  - singlow 12y ago
    When the customers call you, it is because they blame you. You never hear from the ones who don't blame you.
    - busterarm 12y ago
      That's not entirely true, but the majority of them do.
  - couchand 12y ago
    Wait, did you just call broadband internet a "utility"? As in a Title II utility?
    - busterarm 12y ago
      We provide phone service as well/primarily.

icebraining 12y ago

What about the CDN's customers, ie., companies with sites that their costumers couldn't access?