Comcast denies crowd shaping, crowd delaying at FCC hearing

Comcast denies crowd shaping, crowd delaying at FCC hearing

By Eric Bangeman | Published: February 26, 2008 - 05:14PM CT

Yesterday's hearing into Comcast's traffic-shaping practices
at Harvard Law School attracted a huge crowd, one so large
that people who arrived over an hour before it started were
turned away. It was a packed house for a good show, one
that featured Comcast and net neutrality proponents making
their case in front of the five commissioners of the FCC.

A day after, allegations have surfaced that Comcast paid
people to show up and sit in the meeting room in order to
keep people from expressing their feelings about Comcast's
actions to the FCC. Save The Internet is accusing Comcast
of busing in a crowd of supports to pack the room.

"These seat-warmers were paid to fill the room, a move that
kept others from taking part," according to a posting on
the Save The Internet blog. "They arrived en masse some
90 minutes before the hearing began and occupied almost
every available seat, upon which many promptly fell
asleep."

-snip-

Comcast denies packing the room. "We did pay some
individuals to stand in line and hold seats for Comcast
employees," Comcast spokesperson Charlie Douglas told Ars.
"It's a common practice in Washington, DC."

-snip-