The Federal Communications Commission order punishing Comcast for delaying peer-to-peer Internet traffic called for the cable TV giant to adopt a new traffic management approach. It's existing traffic management system--the one it used unfairly, according to the FCC--is provided by vendor Sandvine. However, as Comcast is working on a new system, that doesn't mean Sandvine is out of the picture. The vendor has said in the past that its gear can be used to a number of different ends. Now, the order just better defines what is fair and unfair use by carriers.
Sandvine several months ago announced a FairShare software extension that allows carriers to identify sources of network congestion without delving into applications specifics. Comcast is believed to be considering a variety of possible solutions to meet the FCC order's requirements, and Sandvine's FairShare is believed to be among the candidates, according to Light Reading's Cable Digital News. Sandvine also can support metered broadband billing, which several service providers are testing and many are likely to eventually deploy.
For more:
- see this report [1] at Light Reading's Cable Digital News
Related articles:
The FCC issued its Comcast order last week. FCC report [2]
Sandvine and its competitors were busy around NXTcomm. Sandvine report [3]
Links:
[1] http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=162131&print=true
[2] http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/fcc-issues-comcast-throttling-order/2008-08-21
[3] http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/nxtcomm-arbor-allot-tout-show-news/2008-06-17