In a BBC blog last week Ashley Highfield laid out a 19-point plan for ISPs warning they shouldn't try to charge content providers such as themselves. "Content providers, if they find their content being specifically squeezed, shaped, or capped, could start to indicate on their sites which ISPs their content works best on (and which to avoid)."
ISPs say that on-demand TV services such as the iPlayer are putting strain on their networks which need to be upgraded to cope. Simon Gunter from Tiscali, said the BBC should contribute to the cost and that it was a "bit rich that a publicly-funded organisation is telling a commercial body how to run its business".
According to figures from Ofcom it will cost ISPs in the region of £830m to pay for the extra capacity needed to allow for services like the iPlayer.
Tiscali is leading a call for the BBC to help pay for the rising costs. "The question is about whether we invest in extra capacity or go to the consumer and ask them to pay a BBC tax," he said.
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