Sprint v. Cogent, some clarity & facts
Seth Mattinen
sethm at rollernet.us
Mon Nov 3 17:20:22 UTC 2008
Barrett Lyon wrote:
> Incase this has not hit the list yet:
>
> http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/153194/sprint_reconnects_cogent_but_differences_are_unresolved.html
>
>
>
>
> Sprint Reconnects Cogent, but Differences Are Unresolved
> Mikael Ricknäs, IDG News Service
>
> Monday, November 03, 2008 7:50 AM PST
> On Sunday Sprint Nextel reconnected its network with Cogent
> Communications after severing it earlier last week. The reconnection is
> only temporary, as the core issues in this dispute have not changed,
> Sprint said in a statement to its customers.
>
> As a result, it is again possible for Sprint customers and Cogent
> customers to directly communicate across the Internet. Data supplied by
> Keynote Systems confirms that the two networks are again communicating
> with each other.
>
> Sprint's view of what led up to its disconnecting from Cogent
> Communications on Oct. 30 differs substantially from what Cogent has
> stated.
>
> In shutting down the peering between the two, Sprint violated a
> contractual obligation to exchange Internet traffic with Cogent on a
> settlement-free peering basis, according to Cogent. But that's just
> fiction, according to Sprint, because at no time did the two enter into
> an actual contract.
>
> In 2006, Sprint and Cogent formed a trial agreement that ended in
> September last year. A three-month commercial trial indicated that
> Cogent didn't meet the minimum traffic exchange criteria agreed to by
> both parties, according to Sprint. As a result, settlement-free peering
> was not established, Sprint said.
>
> Instead, Sprint wants Cogent to pay for its ongoing connection to the
> Sprint network. But despite repeated collection attempts by Sprint,
> Cogent has not done that. Nonpayment on Cogent's part is the reason
> Sprint decided to disconnect from Cogent last week, a process that had
> started on Oct. 7, and shouldn't have come as a surprise for Cogent,
> Sprint said in its customer statement.
>
> What happens next remains to be seen. The two operators are involved in
> litigation over the matter. Sprint filed a lawsuit against Cogent on
> Sept. 2 in Fairfax County Circuit Court in Virginia for breach of contract.
>
> On its part, Cogent said it wants settlement-free peering with Sprint.
>
So basically, it won't be resolved until Cogent gets to keep free access
to Sprint. Where's my free access to Sprint? Can I cry and scream that I
have to pay for my access too because I don't qualify for free peering?
~Seth
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