Matt Mathis

Matt Mathis: "We want to explore the possibility of readjusting how the network and end-systems balance the responsibility for allocating network capacity. In particular we want to look at the use of some form of Fair Queuing or similar mechanisms in the network, combined with a change to TCP congestion control, to make it easier for the network to more accurately regulate the traffic. In the long run these changes would eliminate the need for the 'TCP-friendly' property which is currently required for all transport protocols. Although this might seem like a huge paradigm shift for the Internet, independent forces are already driving the most difficult part of these changes: the vast majority of end systems (home users with DSL, cable and FTTH service) are likely to already have their traffic managed by some form of Fair Queuing. We expect this trend to continue, and as a consequence, we believe that these changes can be deployed incrementally, on an as-needed basis.

We want to explore the merits of this paradigm change to identify and investigate areas that need additional research. Our goal is to introduce a compelling argument that the IETF should further relax its requirement that all protocols be TCP-friendly under all conditions. Even a minor weakening of the IETF position will facilitate the Internet evolving along this path."