Fergie's Tech Blog

Anti-Skype software kills IM, P2P too

Doug Mohney write in The Inquirer:

LAST WEEK, Verso Technologies announced the rollout of a "carrier-grade applications filter" that can block so-called bandwidth drains such as Skype, P2P messaging, streaming media, and instant messaging.

Skype is singled out in the headline of the press release. It's not a P2P blocker, it's a "Skype Filtering Technology."

Verso CEO Monty Bannerman, founding CTO of the NAP of Americas, says service providers are gung-ho about his new product offering. As a "free" service, Skype is raiding the business model of service providers that want to roll out VoIP services for their customers. "They're all telling me they hate Skype and they're telling me that they want to do something about Skype," said Bannerman in a telephone interview. "If you have something in your network that is costing you money and raiding your business model, I assure you you're going to do something about it."

Bannerman claims that Skype and other P2P applications were generating up to 30 per cent of existing network traffic load as of last year according to presentations at the North American Network Operators Group (NANOG). Since a revenue-based service provider isn't making any money off that traffic load, it's not a good thing, especially if they plan to offer their own flavor of VoIP to their customer base. Since making the announcement, Verso has received a number of phone calls from existing customers as well as intrigued service providers.

posted by Fergie @ 9/19/2005 06:38:00 AM