Virgin targets BitTorrent users
December 16, 2008
Virgin Media has confirmed that it will introduce network monitoring technology in 2009 to specifically target and restrict BitTorrent traffic.
The move will represent a major policy shift for the ISP/cable provider. Virgin Media currently temporarily throttles the bandwidth of its heaviest downloaders across all applications at peak times, rather than targeting and shaping specific types of traffic.
Virgin argues that its current 'traffic management' policy allows it to ensure service quality at peak times for 95 per cent of customers while still allowing peer-to-peer filesharers to download large amounts of data.