The Federal Communications Commission announced on Friday that they will look into complaints made recently by Netflix and others that large Internet Service Providers are slowing down service to consumers.
FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said that they plan to specifically examine the peering agreements Netflix made with Verizon Communications and Comcast Corp, the Los Angeles Times reports.
"The bottom line is that consumers need to understand what is occurring when they Internet service they've paid for does not adequately deliver the content they desire, especially content they've also paid for," Wheeler said. "It's important that we know - and that consumers know."
According to PC World, Netflix and Internet backbone providers Cogent and Level 3 believe that the two large ISPs refuse to make improvements to their networks, which is creating the slowdown.
While Netflix and Comcast claim they welcome the informal investigation, ISPs shot back at Netflix and said that the slowdown is also partially due to Netflix, who uses cheaper backbone providers, which also affects speeds. Streamingmedia.com executive vice president Dan Raburn wrote in a blog post, that "If Netflix does not receive free peering, ISP customers do not receive good performance and get low rankings and shame from Netflix."
Verizon has also expressed displeasure at the FCC poking their nose into, and possibly regulating, what the company believes has been traditionally "handled through commercial agreements," which "has worked well for the Internet ecosystem and consumers."