3 ms·

> ...I assume Netflix can be pretty sure of where the bottleneck is happening ... It depends on how fancy they get with their detection routines. They can cer

> ...I assume Netflix can be pretty sure of where the bottleneck is happening ... It depends on how fancy they get with their detection routines. They can certainly see which networks the traffic is flowing over, but then there are multiple devices (and networks) in play to deliver that traffic to them. For instance, just a one-way trip showing the devices that could slow down a packet of data can give you an idea of the number of potential bottlenecks: -> Chromecast CPU -> Chromecast WiFi chipset -> User's home network router (usually, but not always, provided by ISP) -> Cable/DSL/FiOS modem -> [[ ISP devices they directly control ]] -> Transit provider's network -> Netflix's network. Netflix could certainly jump through hoops to isolate the bottleneck to the ISP network, but are they? Who knows? I'm not sure they really need to anyway. The hockey stick graph they have showing throughput before and after payment looks like a classic mafia shakedown.

TillE 12y ago
Those factors are smoothed out in aggregate, though. You can't make assumptions about individual cases, but you can look at the whole picture and compare different large ISPs pretty accurately.
fastest963 12y ago
If a large majority of customers that use a particular ISP but are having streaming problems across different devices and if Netflix has no load on their network, then you can assume its a problem with the middle-man.
- notdonspaulding 12y ago
  The point Verizon is making here is that Netflix has not done due diligence to verify that the specific customer they are showing the "Verizon Sucks!" message to is having connection issues that are provably Verizon's fault. It seems to me that they're stopping one foot shy of calling Netflix out for libel. It's not libel if it's true, so it might be better for Netflix to only show the message when they can prove that the specific connection is being slowed because of the interconnect (or lack thereof).
  - hga 12y ago
    I think it would be better put as "claim", vs. point. At the bottom of this item you can see in a lot of detail how Netflix is making this judgement: http://blog.streamingmedia.com/2014/06/netflixs-network-congestion-message-rolling-networks-just-verizon.html http://blog.streamingmedia.com/2014/06/netflixs-network-cong... Sounds sufficient to me.

TillE 12y ago

Those factors are smoothed out in aggregate, though. You can't make assumptions about individual cases, but you can look at the whole picture and compare different large ISPs pretty accurately.

fastest963 12y ago

If a large majority of customers that use a particular ISP but are having streaming problems across different devices and if Netflix has no load on their network, then you can assume its a problem with the middle-man.

notdonspaulding 12y ago
The point Verizon is making here is that Netflix has not done due diligence to verify that the specific customer they are showing the "Verizon Sucks!" message to is having connection issues that are provably Verizon's fault. It seems to me that they're stopping one foot shy of calling Netflix out for libel. It's not libel if it's true, so it might be better for Netflix to only show the message when they can prove that the specific connection is being slowed because of the interconnect (or lack thereof).
- hga 12y ago
  I think it would be better put as "claim", vs. point. At the bottom of this item you can see in a lot of detail how Netflix is making this judgement: http://blog.streamingmedia.com/2014/06/netflixs-network-congestion-message-rolling-networks-just-verizon.html http://blog.streamingmedia.com/2014/06/netflixs-network-cong... Sounds sufficient to me.