Google's Measurement Lab allows people to monitor their network traffic
Google tool sniffs out bandwidth throttling
/v3-uk/news/1979936/google-tool-sniffs-bandwidth-throttling
29 Jan 2009, Shaun Nichols , V3
Google has released a new tool which lets users find out whether their bandwidth is being purposely throttled by their ISP.
The new Google Measurement Lab allows people to monitor their network traffic, and detect whether an internet service provider (ISP) is deliberately slowing certain types of traffic, specifically from torrent services.
Google has partnered with the New America Foundation and the PlanetLab Consortium, and hopes that the site and its accompanying set of measurement tools will allow the group to identify any ISP deliberately throttling web traffic.
"By running these tools, users will get information about their connection and provide researchers with valuable aggregate data," wrote Google internet evangelist Vint Cerf and engineer Stephen Stuart in a blog post.
"No matter your views on net neutrality and ISP network management practices, everyone can agree that internet users deserve to be well-informed about what they're getting when they sign up for broadband, and good data is the bedrock of sound policy."
The service could stoke the debate over net neutrality that has arisen over the past year. Some ISPs have argued that managing so-called 'bandwidth hogs' is necessary to keep speeds up for all users.
Opponents of the practice, including Google, have suggested that it sets the stage for large companies to purchase "preferred" access for their services, putting smaller companies at a disadvantage.
The practice came to a head last year when US cable firm Comcast was found to be deliberately crippling connection speeds for customers who were running BitTorrent.
After pressure from the Federal Communications Commission, Comcast eventually agreed to replace the system with a new policy that caps the total amount of data a user can receive each month.
US cable firm Cox Communications, meanwhile, has just announced that it will begin slowing certain functions under a new policy of "congestion management".
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BroadbandCensus.com Using Network Diagnostic Tool For Broadband Transparency
BroadbandCensus.com has been using the Network Diagnostic Tool of Internet2 since January 2008 as a means of comparing actual internet speeds with those promised by carriers. The speed tests of individual broadband users are all made publicly available on BroadbandCensus.com under a Creative Commons license.
The goal of the Broadband Census is to use transparency and public accountability to allow consumers to understand the speeds, prices, availability, reliability and competition in the local broadband marketplace. See http://broadbandcensus.com/blog/?p=1301, or Take the Broadband Census at http://broadbandcensus.com/census/form
Posted by Drew Clark, 29 Jan 2009
M-Lab FTW~
While Google probably has its own agenda, these tools have the potential to be extremely important in protecting net neutrality. There's a related interesting article here:
http://www.atelier-us.com/internet-usage/article/net-neutrality-watch-dog-tools-from-m-lab-by-google
Posted by Sarah, 01 Feb 2009