Virgin Media to throttle excessive Bittorrent traffic

The UK\'s second largest ISP, Virgin Media, will introduce network monitoring technology to specifically target and restrict BitTorrent traffic next year, the Register reports. This announcement was made during the lauch of Virgin’s 50Mbit/s broadband package. The service will initially be launched without any restrictions, but as traffic picks up, active throttling of Bittorrent will be introduced in order to keep quality of service for all users.

BitTorrent is a major problem for network operators, since heavy users consume enormous amounts of bandwidth. However, monitoring and throttling Bittorrent traffic is met with much opposition since critics see it as a violation of the principle of Net neutrality and a possible violation of privacy and the freedom of speech. However, many ISPs already use specialised "deep packet inspection" (DPI) equipment to monitor and manage the protocols running over their networks.

The details and timing of the application-based restrictions are still being developed according to CEO Neil Berkett and will come into force around the middle of next year.