From Net Neutrality to ICT Neutrality

194 Pages·2022·4.63 MB·English

by  Patrick Maillé, Bruno Tuffin

Patrick Maillé
Bruno Tuffin
From
Net Neutrality
to 
ICT Neutrality
From Net Neutrality to ICT Neutrality
Patrick Maillé (cid:129) Bruno Tuffin
From
Net Neutrality
to
ICT Neutrality
PatrickMaillé BrunoTuffin
IMTAtlantique CentreInriadel’UniversitédeRennes
Rennes,France Rennes,France
ISBN978-3-031-06270-4 ISBN978-3-031-06271-1 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-06271-1
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Preface
ICT (for Information and Communication Technology) is omnipresent in our
modern society, and the economy has gone beyond the industrial economy to the
Internet and ICT economy. Thanks to hyper-connectivity, there are now lots of
opportunitiesforinnovation.AsofJanuary2022,thetop3mostvaluablecompanies
worldwideareallICTcompanies(AppleInc.,Microsoft,AlphabetInc.),andthree
other ICT companies (Amazon Inc., Facebook, Tencent) appear in the top 10.1
Internet Service Providers (ISPs), Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) and cloud
providers,andsocialnetworkactors,allservicesandcontentprovidersare among
actorsresearchingabusinessmodelasprofitableaspossible.
ButthesuccessofICTisoftencoinedtobelinkedtotheopenandfreeInternet,
fosteringparticipationandinnovation.Withnumerousactorswillingtodesignand
implement business models to increase their revenue, the impact on the whole
network outcome can be significant. That issue has been highlighted when ISPs
startedclaimingthatsomebigcontentproviders,representinganimportantpartof
the traffic flowing throughtheir network,shouldparticipate to the networkinfras-
tructureupgradingcosts,withthethreatofbeingblockedorsloweddownincaseof
refusal.Thislaunchedthenetworkneutralitydebate.Basically,netneutralitymeans
thatInternetprovidersshouldtreatallInternetpacketsthesameway,regardlessof
their type, content, origin, or destination. Network (non-)neutrality has become a
very hot topic in the past few years, at the same time from political, economic,
anddailylifepointsofview,becauseitmayrefashiontheInternetbusinessmodel
andingeneralthetelecommunicationsvisionandfuture.Ourpurposeistoreview
thedebateanddiscussargumentsandregulationpassedworldwide.Wealsoaimat
providingabalancebetweenmathematicaltheoryandpracticaldiscussion.
Anotherissue is thatwhile thenetworkneutralityissue hasbeenthepolarizing
onISPs’role,theInternethaschangedfromthesimplecontent-ISP-usersdelivery
chain to a more complicated ecosystem with numerous intermediaries between
content and users and players affecting the online experience. The book aims at
1https://fxssi.com/top-10-most-valuable-companies-in-the-world.
v
vi Preface
highlighting the role of those other actors (CDNs, search engines, “structuring
platforms,” social networks, etc.) and the impact of their possibly non-neutral
behavior,which can bypass the general neutrality principles without violating the
(packet-based)rulescurrentlyevokedinthedebate.Atypicalexampleistheranking
algorithms of search engines being suspected of voluntarily putting in a higher
position their own businesses or their “relations” and lowering the position of
competitors, leading to the so-called search neutrality debate. One of our goals
is open the reader to the complications of limiting the neutrality debate to ISPs,
potentially requiring to extend the neutrality framework to a general definition
encompassing all actors and clarifying the rules. That issue leads to a debate on
the transparencyof algorithms, expected by regulatorybodies, that we hint in the
lastchapters.
We hope that the text will open the readers’ mind to the issues of fairness,
freedom, and economic efficiency, among others, and illustrate the complexity
of confronting those high-level considerations with the constantly evolving ICT
technicalrealities.
Rennes,France PatrickMaillé
BrunoTuffin
Acknowledgments
We, the authors, would like to thank the editors, in particular Ralf Gerstner, for
their assistance, encouragement,and patience duringthe preparationof this book.
Any mistake, error of judgement, or treatment imbalance in the book is our sole
responsibility.
vii
Contents
1 Introduction:ABitofHistory ............................................ 1
1.1 The Adventof the Digital Economyand the Need
forRegulation.......................................................... 1
1.2 TheInternet:WorriesAbouttheLackofNeutrality................. 4
1.3 NewServices:NewDifficultiesandPotentialHindrance
toSociety............................................................... 7
1.4 TowardICTNeutrality?............................................... 12
1.5 GoalandOrganizationofThisBook ................................. 12
2 Definitions................................................................... 15
2.1 SeveralDefinitionsofNeutrality...................................... 16
2.2 AnalysisandComparison............................................. 19
2.3 SpecializedServices................................................... 21
2.3.1 PerimeterofSpecializedServices............................ 22
2.3.2 NeedforSpecializedServices................................ 23
2.3.3 ImplicationsofIntroducingaSpecialClassofService...... 23
2.4 Zero-RatingandSponsoredData ..................................... 24
2.5 PublicConsultations................................................... 26
2.6 WorldwideImplementations.......................................... 27
2.6.1 NorthAmerica................................................. 27
2.6.2 Europe ......................................................... 29
2.6.3 Asia ............................................................ 32
2.6.4 Oceania ........................................................ 34
2.6.5 SouthAmerica................................................. 34
2.6.6 Africa .......................................................... 35
2.7 ASituationStillEvolving............................................. 35
2.8 ATrade-OffwithUsersDecidingDifferentiation?.................. 37
2.9 Conclusions............................................................ 38
ix
x Contents
3 ProsandCons:TheArgumentsintheDebate .......................... 39
3.1 The“Freedom”Arguments:WhoseFreedom?....................... 40
3.1.1 [Pro-NN]NetNeutralityIsNeededtoGuarantee
FreeSpeech.................................................... 40
3.1.2 [Anti-NN]NetNeutralityHindersOperators’
FreedomofEnterprise......................................... 41
3.2 The“Investment”Arguments......................................... 41
3.2.1 [Anti-NN]ReturnsonInvestmentsAreNeeded............. 41
3.2.2 [Pro-NN]MoreCustomers,MoreInvestments .............. 42
3.3 The“CompetitionandInnovation”Arguments...................... 42
3.3.1 [Pro-NN]Non-neutralityBiasestheCompetition
AmongServices............................................... 42
3.3.2 [Anti-NN]ISPsFavoringSomeContentProviders
StimulatesISPCompetition(ThroughContent)............. 43
3.3.3 [Pro-NN]NeutralityIsNeededtoAllowInnovating
Newcomers .................................................... 44
3.4 The“SecurityandPrivacy”Arguments .............................. 44
3.4.1 [Anti-NN]EncryptionAlreadyPreventsDiscrimination.... 44
3.4.2 [Pro-NN]NeutralityHelpsProtectPrivacy .................. 44
3.5 The“Welfare”Arguments............................................. 45
3.5.1 [Pro-NN] Non-neutralityWould Lead to a
FragmentedInternet,WhichIsBadForUsers............... 45
3.5.2 [Anti-NN]ContentProvidersShouldContribute
totheInfrastructureCoststoReduceUsers’Share.......... 45
3.5.3 [Anti-NN]AFreeMarketFindstheMostEfficient
Outcome ....................................................... 46
3.6 Conclusions............................................................ 46
4 MathematicalAnalysis .................................................... 47
4.1 IntroductiontoMathematicalModelingandGameTheory......... 48
4.1.1 ElementsofNon-cooperativeGameTheory................. 48
4.1.2 OutputAnalysis ............................................... 50
4.1.3 PrincipleofMechanismDesign .............................. 52
4.2 ABasicModel......................................................... 53
4.3 ModelwithTwoContentProviders................................... 60
4.3.1 PricingGameBetweenCPs(α =2) ......................... 63
4.3.2 FullyNeutralCase(α =2) ................................... 64
4.3.3 WeaklyNeutralCase(α =2)................................. 64
4.3.4 Non-neutralCase(α =2)..................................... 65
4.3.5 Comparison.................................................... 65
4.4 OtherConclusionsfromtheLiterature ............................... 66
4.5 AdditionalNotes....................................................... 68
Contents xi
5 Non-neutralityPushedbyContentProviders........................... 69
5.1 Non-neutralityasaBarriertoEntryProtectingIncumbents......... 70
5.1.1 ModelingtheImpactofaNewEntrantCP .................. 71
5.1.2 Actors’RevenuesandDecisionTimeScales ................ 73
5.1.3 AnalyzingtheGameforFixedSidePayments............... 74
5.1.4 CantheISPandtheIncumbentCPAgreeonSide
Payments? ..................................................... 76
5.1.5 RefiningtheModel............................................ 79
5.2 SponsoredDataandZeroRating ..................................... 80
5.2.1 Modeling Sponsored-Data Practices in a
CompetitiveISPContext...................................... 81
5.2.2 HowDoestheCPDecidetoSponsorandAdd
Advertisement?................................................ 84
5.2.3 APracticeFinallyMostlyBenefitingISPs? ................. 85
5.3 WhenBigCPsDesignatethe“Good”ISPs:Incentivizing
Non-neutralityWithoutPaying ....................................... 87
5.3.1 ISPCompetition:TheImportanceofLookingGood........ 87
5.3.2 ATwo-ISP,Two-CPmodelwithHeterogeneousUsers ..... 89
5.3.3 UserEquilibria:HowISPDecisionsAffectUser
SubscriptionChoices.......................................... 91
5.3.4 TheGameAmongISPsandItsConsequences .............. 94
5.3.5 AModelYieldingUnexpectedConclusions................. 96
5.4 Conclusions............................................................ 97
6 AMoreGeneralViewofNeutrality...................................... 99
6.1 IsItRelevanttoGeneralizeNetworkNeutrality?.................... 99
6.2 ContentDeliveryNetworks:IntermediariesFlyingUnder
theRadar?.............................................................. 101
6.2.1 IntroductiontoCDNRoleandImpact ....................... 101
6.2.2 Model Illustrating the Impact of CDNs on
CompetitionBetweenCPs.................................... 103
6.2.3 Model Illustrating the Impact of CDNs on
CompetitionBetweenISPs ................................... 110
6.3 IssuesRelatedtoVerticalIntegration................................. 112
6.3.1 VerticalIntegrationandtheInternetEcosystem ............. 112
6.3.2 IllustrationofVerticalIntegrationonOurBasicModel..... 114
6.3.3 OtherIllustrationsandResultsfromModels................. 117
6.4 DeviceNeutrality...................................................... 118
6.5 NeutralityofStructuringPlatforms................................... 119
6.6 AlsoTowardDataNeutrality? ........................................ 120
7 SearchNeutrality........................................................... 121
7.1 IsItinSearchEngines’InteresttoBeNeutral?...................... 122
7.1.1 ModelingtheLong-Termvs.Short-TermGains
Trade-Off ...................................................... 124