Broadband providers get a leg up as Netflix ends standoff with Comcast • 8:53 PM

• In what could be a landmark pact for its dealings with other broadband providers, Netflix ( NFLX ) agrees to pay Comcast ( CMCSA ) to ensure its shows stream smoothly to the cable operators' customers.


• The debate: Who should bear the cost of upgrading Internet networks to carry the growing volume of online video - broadband providers (like Comcast) or content companies (like Netflix). While some big content names have begun paying the providers for faster and smoother access, Netflix - until now - has been a holdout, and today's agreement likely paves the way for similar deals with major broadband companies like Verizon ( VZ ), AT&T ( T ), and Time Warner ( TWC ).


• The agreement, of course comes just days after Comcast agreed to buy TIme Warner in a deal which would make it by far the largest provider of broadband in the U.S., and it removes one potential regulatory issue hanging over the acquisition.


• Press release


• From Friday: Signs point to a Netflix/Comcast deal

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