A new studyis putting U.S. wireless carriers998 Archivesblast for slowing down online video traffic, even during periods where they claim they are not.
Research conducted by Northeastern University and the University of Massachusetts found that wireless companies -- including the main four U.S. carriers: Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint, all slowed down video traffic from early 2018 to 2019.
The resulting effect for consumers is delayed load times, buffering, and degradation in quality when streaming video content.
These carriers have long maintained that this practice, known as throttling, is done to avoid congestion. However, the study found that online video throttling was occurring around the clock, regardless of congestion.
SEE ALSO: How the battle over domain prices could drastically change the webAccording to Bloomberg, for example, the study found that AT&T had been slowing down network traffic for Netflix and YouTube videos more than 70 percent of the time. However, the researchers did not find any throttling from AT&T when it came to Amazon Prime Video. T-Mobile, on the other hand, throttled the ecommerce giant’s video service in about half of the tests.
The tests were conducted via a mobile application called Wehe, which tests users’ internet connections. More than 126,000 smartphone users from around the world took part in the research. In addition, researchers purchased SIM cards from Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint in order to carry out their own tests. Over 650,000 tests in total were conducted in the U.S. for the study.
Users taking part in the study were able to test online connections with YouTube, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, NBCSports, Skype, Spotify, and Vimeo.
YouTube and Netflix traffic was slowed down by all four major U.S. wireless carriers: Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint. Just one of those streaming services, Spotify, were not being throttled by any of the providers. Of the major four U.S. carriers, only Sprint was found to be throttling Skype video calls.
Since the repeal of net neutralityunder the Trump administration, advocates of the rule have worried that internet service providers would no longer treat all web traffic equal. A main concern is that internet providers will create a tiered system that prices out competition and providers faster service to only those that can afford it.
While policy changes in response to the demise of net neutrality are still very much an issue, it should be noted that the study found this throttling behavior was occurring even while net neutrality was in effect.
Topics AT&T Verizon
Then and Now: 5 Generations of GeForce Graphics Compared
The royal flag didn't fly half
Baseball fan honors dead friend by flushing his ashes at Major League ballparks
The royal flag didn't fly half
Tips for Playing PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds
Jane Goodall speaks out about being quoted in Ivanka Trump's book
Hulu has always been cool, you just haven't been paying attention
Adorable Maori toddler charms the internet with passionate haka dance
Great white shark leaps into tiny boat, fisherman treats it like NBD
Japan's new ultra
NYT Connections hints and answers for January 20: Tips to solve 'Connections' #589.
Google Doc phishing scam spreads like wildfire — here's how to spot it
Whatsapp is down, and the internet is freaking out
Singapore's going to see self
Meta deletes all AI character profiles on Facebook, Insta after backlash
Watch NASA's spectacular home movie of the first dive between Saturn and its rings
11 reasons why you should dump your iPhone for the BlackBerry KEYone
India's biggest film 'Baahubali 2' is on a record
Trump who? Tech giants join massive effort to uphold Paris Agreement
Australian Twitter communities are more diverse than you might think
Trump's DACA decision is a double whammy for hurricane survivorsJohn Legend once tried to break up with Chrissy Teigen, but she shut him down20 things that helped us get through 2020Donald Trump probably isn't going to like what Putin just said about himCher destroys obnoxious Twitter troll in defense of DACAWhat to do if someone AirDrops you an unsolicited dick pic on public transportGoogle is testing dark mode on its desktop Search resultsThe enduring power of 'Uncut Gems' memesAnother Kimye baby is on its way [Updated]Hurricane Harvey telethon: Beyonce, George Clooney and more to appearHigh Court's sameGoogle's library of AR animals grows, with 50 new ones to choose fromTwitter kills live video streaming app PeriscopeGuy Fieri's atThe latest update in this ongoing Twitter ghost story is the creepiest yetChris Evans sums up the difference between Barack Obama and Donald Trump in one satisfying tweetHurricane Harvey telethon: Beyonce, George Clooney and more to appear20 things that helped us get through 2020Subway franchise prints proThe 20 best tweets of 2020 The pop culture male heroes who don't realize they're actually villains Photos of Google's new Pixel tablet leak before its October event 'Civilization 6' is now available on iPhone Flossing may not be that effective after all Aussie politician commentates her own bizarre documentary via Facebook Live Google might be making a Home Hub Gifts for people who love Chris Hemsworth 4 toys to give kids a head start in STEM without screen time This baby Harry Potter fan grew up to be like Hermione Granger GM and Honda could give us self Draymond Green apologizes for accidentally posting his junk on Snapchat Watch a tiger casually rip a car bumper clean off Apple, Amazon deny reports of a massive Chinese hardware attack Dublin pub takes the piss out of Donald Trump, literally Female Olympians pose naked in tribute to the bodies that helped them Tim Cook to host fundraiser for Hillary Clinton Predictably, America wasn't thrilled with the nationwide Presidential Alert test Krispy Kreme 24 hour drive Mike Morhaime is no longer the CEO of Blizzard Bird wants you riding its e
1.5012s , 8228.5390625 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【1998 Archives】,Exquisite Information Network