Re: Google Wants Its Own Fast Track on the Web - WSJ.com

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: "David P. Reed" <dpreed () reed com>
Date: December 15, 2008 11:42:31 AM EST
To: dave () farber net
Cc: ip <ip () v2 listbox com>
Subject: Re: [IP] Google Wants Its Own Fast Track on the Web - WSJ.com

As a business, Google is hardly set up to defend principles.  If  
anyone thought that defending Google was the primary goal of those of  
us who have been urging continued care to provide "no special  
discrimination" by access provider networks, this article represents a  
very clear counterexample.

Google will do what is necessary to protect its business model.  It's  
no different from Microsoft or Comcast in that respect.

If Google can "make a deal" to raise costs for competitors by buying  
exclusive access to complementary capabilities among the access  
providers, what you get is the classic robber-baron monopoly  
capability - and the profits from such control are what the  
stockholders would covet.

Consequently, we need some form of neutrality, even more, one would  
think.  This is why markets fail.

All the more reason to look askance at Eric Schmidt's role in the  
Obama kitchen cabinet.  The same role was occupied in the Bush  
administration by the CEO of Verizon.

CEO's make *terrible* choices for technology advisors.  They cannot  
avoid fundamental conflicts of interest.  But neutral technology  
advisors are never on the covers of Fortune Magazine.

David Farber wrote:
> So much for the competition and Net Neu djf
>
> http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122929270127905065.html
>
>
>      By VISHESH KUMAR
>      <http://online.wsj.com/search/search_center.html?KEYWORDS=VISHESH+KUMAR&ARTICLESEARCHQUERY_PARSER=bylineAND 
> > and CHRISTOPHER
>      RHOADS
>      <http://online.wsj.com/search/search_center.html?KEYWORDS=CHRISTOPHER+RHOADS&ARTICLESEARCHQUERY_PARSER=bylineAND 
> >
>
> The celebrated openness of the Internet -- network providers are not  
> supposed to give preferential treatment to any traffic -- is quietly  
> losing powerful defenders.
>
> Google <http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=goog 
> > Inc. has approached major cable and phone companies that carry  
> Internet traffic with a proposal to create a fast lane for its own  
> content, according to documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.  
> Google has traditionally been one of the loudest advocates of equal  
> network access for all content providers.
>
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