Google Admits Current Internet Won’t Scale for Video
February 7th, 2007 by Chris KinnanIt’s very hard to square the recent comments by a Google executive with the company’s stance in favor of Net Neutrality mandates. According to Reuters’ report titled “Google and cable firms warn of risks from Web TV”, Vincent Dureau, Google’s head of TV technology, said at the Cable Europe Congress yesterday that, “The Web infrastructure, and even Google’s (infrastructure) doesn’t scale. It’s not going to offer the quality of service that consumers expect.” The statement was part of an industry “warning” about the shortcomings of the current data infrastructure.
The problem is, in large part, a lack of robust “last-mile” connections to American households– a problem primarily due to outdated mandates and government limits on competition, which deter investment and innovation. I don’t see why Google doesn’t address the heart of the issue– the need for property rights, investment, innovation, and competition.
No matter, I increasingly think that the misguided passion behind the Net Neutrality debate of 2006 will look pretty silly in a couple of years, as massive demand (and consumer and business willingness to pay) keep propelling the internet forward. Today’s Internet is cool, but we’re just beginning to scrape the surface of the possibilities– if we can just get the government out of the way. We all see the problem. It’s a shame that Google doesn’t do more to demand deregulation and call for greater last-mile competition instead of asking for more government mandates.
February 9th, 2007 at 1:14 pm
Chris, thanks for a great post. Despite claims of altruism and proclaiming their “do no evil†mantra, Google has been backing so-called net neutrality solely because until now, it is in their best business interests to do so. In light of Google’s application for a QoS patent, tech blogger Matt Sherman notes, “Google has no interest in neutrality of any sort, be it on the content level or the physical network. By cynically backing net neutrality regulation, they hope to subdue potential competitors through force of government. At the same time, they work to build advantages that are theirs alone.†Google should be able to operate under any business model it chooses, but it should at least be honest about the motives behind its actions. You can read more at my coalition’s blog, http://www.handsoff.org.