BT has recently been caught in a bit of controversy as it’s been reducing the speeds of broadband for customers on the cheapest package causing the BBC iPlayer to be virtually unusable. Customers understandably weren’t happy with this situation but in the small print BT make it clear they can indulge in these tactics.

Today BT have made a move that should concern anyone who values the internet. They are demanding:

[The BBC] need to make a fair contribution to the cost of delivering online video and other content.

They argue that the broadband market is so competitive that it’s unfair that they should have to pay to provide the bandwidth for such large content. They think it’s reasonable that the provider of the content chip in to help them out.

There are three big problems with BT’s argument.

1. BT want paying twice

When I pay for a broadband subscription, I’m paying to be able to access the internet at the speed and quantity (on capped connections) agreed in the contract. I pay money – the ISP gives me internet.

The BBC iPlayer is on the internet, therefore that’s what I pay for. It’s absurd for BT to then ask the BBC to pay them as well. The BBC already pay to produce the content and transfer the data from their servers to BT before they in turn transfer it to me.

If BT get their way, they will be being paid by both the customer and the BBC for exactly the same service.

BT can’t compete on price with other broadband providers so are looking at other revenue streams. In a fair market BT would either increase their prices, make less profit, or close up shop. Increasing prices won’t win them any customers, so instead they go out for a more indirect way of making up the difference.

2. Internet Neutrality

At the moment the internet is neutral. This blog post won’t be delivered to your browser any faster or slower than google or facebook or the iPlayer. Your broadband provider just sees data and doesn’t discriminate.

It’s this neutrality that’s allowed the internet to become what it is so fast. To create a website costs next to nothing. In the old world, if I self published this post it would cost me a fortune, and even then, there is no way it would be available to people in every corner of the world.

If BT and other service providers get their way, this will come to a sudden end. The BBC have big pockets and could afford to pay BT to ensure the iPlayer and it’s news reaches the world. The problem is, the average blogger doesn’t. So very quickly blogs will become like newspapers: very expensive to start with a huge risk. The internet will be no different to TV, with only those with big pockets able to get their content out.

3. The consumer always gets the bill

BT getting it’s way will ensure we all get cheap (or maybe even free) broadband. “Surely that’s better than £10/month?” I hear you say.

You only have to think for a second to see why this makes no sense. If I get broadband for free, someone has to be paying for it. In this case the BBC. So what do the BBC do to find the missing cash? Increase the License fee. Private companies will just bump up their prices or increase the number of adverts (which is only a short term solution as their is only so much money to be spent on adverts).

As I see it the argument is pretty clear and it doesn’t look good for the likes of BT. Hopefully the government will see things for what they are and legislate to stop them ever putting their plans in place.