Another clear sign that the United States no longer has net neutrality is that the telecommunication company Comcast managed to force Netflix to pay up, threatening it with throttling. Despite the fact that both sides in the case keep spinning what has happened, it is known that Netflix has actually written a check to get a service for its subscribers that they had already paid for. This can only mean a 2 tiered internet over the pond.

Netflix insists that it was paying to ensure that its films and TV shows stream smoothly to Comcast subscribers. In other words, the telcos have a precedent for dealing with other high-bandwidth services. However, Comcast didn’t get everything its own way – according to the terms and conditions of the deal, Netflix will get direct access to ISP’s broadband network – apparently, to make sure that the latter doesn’t throttle its traffic with any means.

The industry observers admit that what might have forced the streaming service to the table was the news that Comcast was going to acquire Time Warner Cable. This deal could make Comcast the dominant provider of broadband in the United States and put it into a much stronger position to tell the streaming service what to do.

In the meantime, Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings, said he just didn’t want streaming speeds to deteriorate further and become a problem for Netflix users. The companies issued a statement confirming the broad outlines of the deal and pointed out that the agreement would provide “Comcast’s US broadband users with a high-quality Netflix video experience”.

In other words, Comcast has won its battle to get a 2 tiered internet where firms have to pay to get the service their users have already paid for. However, the companies claim that Netflix paid for the cost of upgrading the Internet's wires to carry the ever increasing volume of online video. While a number of the largest Internet companies in recent years have started paying US ISPs for direct connections to get faster and smoother access to their services, Netflix managed to hold out – but not for long. The expectations of the market are that Netflix will agree to pay off the other ISPs following the deal.