IP Democracy: Is Cox Blocking Craigslist?

In Washington, bad public incidents that bolster momentum for some kind of regulation or legislation or government action are called “horror stories.” If net neutrality proponents don’t seize upon the following tale as a horror story, then they need to go back to lobbying school.

Tom Forenski has this well-documented look into how Cox Cable is blocking Craigslist. It seems that Cox high-speed users can’t get access to Craigslist due to security software from Authentium. Authentium admitted in February that its software is in fact causing a problem for Cox users, but hasn’t fixed the snafu.

Craigslist has tried to no avail to get Authentium to correct the problem. Amazingly, CEO Jim Buckmaster was unaware of Cox Media’s own classified advertising business until informed of this by Forenski (Forenski literally walked across the street to talk to Buckmaster).

This kind of blockage, which, to be fair, is probably inadvertent, is exactly what net neutrality proponents say will happen absent regulations.

This situation does not look good in the context of the net neutrality debate. This is exactly the kind of scenario that many people are concerned about, that the cable companies and the telcos will make it difficult for their internet users to access competing services.

Update: Broadband Reports elaborates further on the likelihood that the blockage of Craigslist is just, um, a screw-up, and not malicious intent.

It would take a rare form of incompetence for incumbent execs to decide to block users from accessing content at the very apex of the net-neutrality debate in Congress. Similarly, crying wolf each time a network belches could hurt the case for net-neutrality by painting advocates as knee-jerk reactionaries.

I maintain it probably doesn’t matter — folks will seize upon this as an augur of what might happen if rules mandating net neutrality aren’t set in place.

Posted by Cynthia Brumfield on June 7, 2006 9:01 AM to IP Democracy