A Sticky Fight Between Comcast And Level 3 Over The Web

It seems like almost everybody enjoys a good tussle, but what do people do when both combatants seem unlikeable and disingenuous? That may end up being the dilemma for observers in the recent dust-up between Level 3 (Nasdaq:LVLT) and Comcast (Nasdaq:CMCSA). While the details of the dispute are arcane enough that it may only interest hard-core 'net-heads and those involved in the business side of the internet, the ramifications of this argument could stretch far and wide. 

The Facts, As They Seem  
Both Comcast and Level 3 are spinning the details of this dispute to cast themselves in the best possible light, and numerous commentators are aligning themselves as well (generally against Comcast, it seems), but here is what the dispute really covers. Comcast is complaining that Level 3 is sending far more content to Comcast than they are sending back to Level 3 and that Level 3 is effectively acting as a content delivery network (CDN) "in disguise." As a CDN, then, Comcast argues that Level 3 should be required to pay the same sort of fees that it charges to other acknowledged CDNs like Akamai (Nasdaq:AKAM) and Limelight (Nasdaq:LLNW). 



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