BitTorrent and Net Neutrality

I normally watch a large number of TV series. But don’t start guessing I’m a couch potato or something(though I come pretty close to being one). I don’t watch them on TV. Most of the TV shows are not even aired where I stay. I don’t have a blazing internet connection like the one that Verizon is offering now, 20Mbps/20Mbps FiOS symmetric service. So I do what most people do. Download them using BitTorrent waiting for hours, and sometimes days, before a single episode can be downloaded and then watch it with all the enthusiasm one could muster after such a boring wait.

I observed that whatever be the download, be it Japanese anime or American TV series, seeds from US seem to be the most generous. They are the ones who seed for a long time even after they finish downloading and maintain consistent upload speeds on their part. I just want them to know, “I appreciate it dude(s)! I really do. The world would be a very selfish place without you guys.”. I always thought and expected internet giants like Sweden, where things like 1Gbps connections are everyday words, would be at the top of the benevolent BitTorrent users.

Hearing news like comcast throttling and faking BitTorrent traffic should be a cause of concern for all of us. Of course corporates should be able to rake in profits. But not at the expense of user experience. When they expect us to pay whatever they demand as the service fee for their pathetic service, we should have the right to do whatever we want with the connection we have. Net neutrality should be as basic a right as free speech. Why should anyone tell us what to browse and and what to breath.

Like one of my country men said, “Swaraj(Independence) is my birth right, and I shall have it!” - Net Neutrality should be everyone’s birth right.