Comcast among others have also been proven to be throttling customers who use other streaming products like Netflix.
This is from the comcast forums:
06-30-2011 04:20 PM
Comcast ~is~ definitively throttling your data download speeds whenever you go to Netflix. I’d been fighting Comcast for 6 months on speed issues, and have written two in-depths analysis on the problem.
If you want to see for yourself (and I recommend you try this test yourself, just for your own peace of mind that you are not crazy!), read this article:
http://www.lonniewest.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=135:comcast2&catid=9:technolo...
This article is a follow-up to an earlier analysis showing how Comcast support personnel will deliberately have users test their download speed using a ~Comcast~ speed test (because Comcast does not throttle their own servers!) and simply pass off the problem as a slow computer or “network problems” with the sites you are visiting.
As you can see from the Netflix before and after tests... This is all complete BS: you cannot deny that throttling is happening and it is specifically aimed at a competing streaming video provider.
You are paying for bandwidth you are not really getting.
See the following for the above: http://forums.comcast.com/t5/Connectivity-and-Modem-Help/Re-Throttling-down-Netflix/td-p/853513
That is of course from a 2011 thread, but you can find numerous other fora with the same type of thread/complaint.
I have heard some people claim they throttle to the extent of not having Comcast’s digital telephone service while streaming.
I left the service Clear for AT&T after they began throttling my usage and slowing down video streams and downloads. Clear even got sued.