Binge On! - get your umbrellas out, stuff's hitting the fan.

Sun Jan 10 03:00:48 UTC 2016

On Saturday, January 9, 2016, Constantine A. Murenin <mureninc at gmail.com>
wrote:

> This is not a lossless 480p we're talking about, and most Android
> phones have been through quite a few generations of having at least
> 720p, if not 1080p or 1440p, and 5" displays.  I wouldn't at all be so
> quick to dismiss that there's no difference.
>
> Also, according to http://www.lighterra.com/papers/videoencodingh264/,
> for a high-quality 480p, you're supposed to have a 2.5Mbps link to
> accommodate a 1.6Mbps stream; and a few providers already stream at or
> above 1.5Mbps for 480p, including BBC at 1500, ESPN at 2000, iTunes at
> 1500 and Netflix at 1050 or 1750 (1050 results in lower quality 480p).
> Being throttled at 1.5Mbps would mean that 480p video from any of
> these provides, if forced at 480p, would either result in just enough
> stuttering or buffering issues to ruin the experience, or will be
> automatically downgraded to 360p (which is still 1400 for ESPN,
> meaning, it might even go to 240p).
>
> Moreover, I have a feeling that on HSPA+ their new throttling results
> in below 480p resolution, because the network is no longer afforded to
> have the bursts to compensate for the occasional variability of the
> connection.  (Google Galaxy Nexus is HSPA+ and 720p.)  So much for
> 480p and the DVD quality.
>
> C.
>
>

To disabuse anyone on this list about how video is treated in mobile, Page
11 has a good reality check on how every major mobile provider in the usa
actively adjusts video

 https://www3.cs.stonybrook.edu/~phillipa/papers/traffic-diff_imc15.pdf

Given that world, my opinion is stepping down abr is the least intrusive
method, verses active transcoding .... Which modifies a copywrited work
between origin and consumer.

According to this tweet, "partners" control the bitrate to avoid exercising
abr , and thus no buffering

https://twitter.com/slidefuse/status/685373665882599424

So, that is a reasonable e2e approach given the world of mobile video....
Just talking from an engineering perspective. The alternative is that there
is quiet arms race between access providers and video providers as
described in the first link.

On 8 January 2016 at 20:25, Mike Hammett <nanog at ics-il.net <javascript:;>>
> wrote:
> > I'm not certain that most consumers notice or care. How many people can
> notice 480p vs. 720p vs. 1080p on a 4" display? Now how many will notice
> the buffering or larger bills?
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > -----
> > Mike Hammett
> > Intelligent Computing Solutions
> > http://www.ics-il.com
> >
> >
> >
> > Midwest Internet Exchange
> > http://www.midwest-ix.com
> >
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> >
> > From: "Constantine A. Murenin" <mureninc at gmail.com <javascript:;>>
> > To: "Valdis Kletnieks" <Valdis.Kletnieks at vt.edu <javascript:;>>
> > Cc: "North American Network Operators' Group" <nanog at nanog.org
> <javascript:;>>
> > Sent: Friday, January 8, 2016 10:07:06 PM
> > Subject: Re: Binge On! - get your umbrellas out, stuff's hitting the fan.
> >
> > On 7 January 2016 at 19:43, Valdis Kletnieks <Valdis.Kletnieks at vt.edu
> <javascript:;>> wrote:
> >> So we went round and round back in November regarding Binge On! and
> whether
> >> it was net neutrality. So here's some closure to that...
> >>
> >> The EFF did some testing and discovered that what T-Mobile is actually
> doing
> >> doesn't match what they said it was...
> >>
> >>
> https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2016/01/eff-confirms-t-mobiles-bingeon-optimization-just-throttling-applies
> >>
> >> Apparently, John Legere, CEO of T-Mobile, doesn't know who the EFF is,
> >> or why they're giving him a hard time.
> >>
> >> "Part B of my answer is, who the fuck are you, anyway, EFF?" Legere
> said. "Why
> >> are you stirring up so much trouble, and who pays you?"
> >>
> >> http://www.theverge.com/2016/1/7/10733298/john-legere-binge-on-lie
> >>
> >> /me makes popcorn....
> >
> > I don't know what people have been smoking, but I'd like to set the
> > record straight, once and for all.
> >
> > T-Mobile US said that ALL video will be affected from day 0!
> >
> > Here's my comment on
> >
> https://www.reddit.com/r/tmobile/comments/3sbbm5/netflix_hbo_gonow_sling_tv_showtime_hulu_espn_and/cwx16ya
> >
> > 2015-11-11: «Didn't T-Mobile say that all videos will automatically go
> > at 480p from that point on? If so, what's really the point of an extra
> > step, you know, of the service explicitly "applying" to participate?»
> >
> > I've taken the time to find the source material that must have made me
> > make such a comment, and, I FOUND IT!
> >
> > https://newsroom.t-mobile.com/media-kits/un-carrier-x.htm
> >
> >> Los Angeles, California — November 10, 2015
> > ...
> >
> >> Powered by new technology built in to T-Mobile’s network, Binge On
> optimizes video for mobile screens, minimizing data consumption while still
> delivering DVD or better quality (e.g. 480p or better). That means more
> reliable streaming for services that stream free with Binge On, and for
> almost all other video, it means T-Mobile Simple Choice customers can watch
> up to three times more video from their data plan. And, as always, T-Mobile
> has put customers in total control with a switch to activate or deactivate
> Binge On for each line in their My T-Mobile account. Binge On is all about
> customer choice.
> >
> > Here it is again, the relevant bits:
> >
> >> for almost all other video, it means T-Mobile Simple Choice customers
> can watch up to three times more video from their data plan
> >
> > Those words have certainly been there since at least 2015-11-11!
> >
> > HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT!
> >
> > Just like the rest of the increases in ARPU and other metrics.
> > Unlimited 4G didn't just have the tethering bucket increased from 7GB
> > to 14GB, but the price went from 80$ to 95$, too. (And that doesn't
> > include the earlier increase from 70$ to 80$, either.)
> >
> > Oh, and, to answer EFF's question on why it's enabled by default:
> >
> > https://youtu.be/MHFUT1_QlB8?t=47s
> >
> >>>>> Since it's launched in November, we've learned customers were
> watching 12% more video.
> >
> > It is not explicit that "12%" refers to a minute-based metric, but
> > that's most certainly what was meant.
> >
> > Now, compare this with the 66,6% savings by throttling all video to
> > 1.5Mbps, so that "customers can watch up to three times more video",
> > and the net effects of unlimited binge on become quite clear (and
> > quite counter-intuitive to a naive guess on the matter).
> >
> > That said, I have to say I'm disappointed with him going against his
> > own consumers this time around. The only truth from his
> > https://youtu.be/MHFUT1_QlB8 video is that, indeed, if the Dumb and
> > Dumber would have implemented this functionality first, the carriers
> > indeed would have found a way to charge extra for it!
> >
> > Cheers,
> > Constantine.SU.
>