How the Web's Fast Lanes Would Work Without Net Neutrality

If U.S. regulators end up allowing telecom companies to set up fast lanes on the public Internet, companies that make the needed gear say the remaining service would inevitably get a little slower. The idea of a fast lane, or "paid prioritization," means preferred traffic moving inside broadband providers' networks would be ushered through congested spots first.The process works a bit like cars moving through a tollgate. When packets of data show up, the equipment that routes them along their way checks to see which ones have paid for priority access and slots those packets into faster moving queues. The rest would have to wait a little longer than they would have otherwise."You can reallocate what's in the pipe, but it can't get wider," said Don Bowman, chief technology officer for network-gear maker Sandvine Corp. SVC.T -2.19% 

As an alternative, broadband providers could instead route traffic down separate channels for "managed services" that telecom and cable companies currently use to carry their own services, like video. Content companies like Apple Inc.AAPL +1.48% have showed interest in that option, which would avoid hurting the broadband provider's remaining Internet traffic. But expanding those private lines comes at a cost. The Federal Communications Commission's rules for an open Internet, proposed Thursday, left the door open for broadband companies to prioritize traffic within their public Internet routes. The rules would only bar preferential treatment "that deprives the consumer of what the consumer has paid for." The chairman of the FCC,VZ +2.31%or Comcast Corp. CMCSA -0.24%

 A number of companies sell gear that would let Internet providers segregate traffic and bill for different speeds. They include Sandvine, Allot Communications Ltd ALLT +3.62%, Cisco Systems Inc. CSCO +0.79% .The question is how noticeable the slowdown would be. Some network engineers say not at all, because prioritized traffic only makes much difference when service is especially congested. Non-prioritized traffic is more likely to "drop" away at overworked links before it reaches its customer, but that same traffic would probably be dropping away anyway. "When there is congestion, everything suffers," said Andrei Elefant,chief executive of Allot. "We just make sure that some types of traffic will suffer less." Verizon has pushed for the ability to offer such deals. Comcast isn't considering pay-for-priority deals with Internet content owners, in part because they would be too complex to implement, Chief Network Officer John Schanz told the Journal. Comcast has, however, pushed for BT.A.LN +0.99% PLC said the company "is committed to an open Internet providing full consumer choice while also allowing for the commercial innovation that is vital for ensuring the ongoing success of the Internet." Competition among broadband providers in the U.K. also safeguards the Internet from becoming an uneven playing field, he said. Another issue could make the priority traffic debate a moot point. Just because Internet providers can charge for fast lanes doesn't mean consumers will accept them, or that content companies will pay to use them. Priority transit may not be all that useful for most companies. "The only time that prioritization will have any effect at all is when the link is full," says Cam Cullen, vice president of global marketing for Procera. "The content providers really have no desire to pay for that if they don't have to."