The Federal Communications Commission will vote at its August 1 meeting this Friday whether to take action against Comcast for blocking and slowing down certain types of traffic in order to maximize profits by avoiding to invest in additional infrastructure.

Rumors are that three of the five FCC commissioners, including Chairman Kevin Martin, want Comcast punished, while the two remaining Republicans are expected to vote with their colleagues. All five need to unanimously support net neutrality in order for the Federal Communications Commission to impose its decision on the ISP.

The punishment apparently consists of an order which demands that the ISP stops slowing down or blocking certain types of traffic, including peer-to-peer transfers. Also, the FCC will make Comcast explain to consumers and the commission how it has blocked such traffic in the past, and publicly disclose how it plans to manage its network in the future.

Chairman Kevin Martin, who is a Republican, and Democratic commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein, support the measure. Comcast was found by an AP test, then by a test by the Max Planck Institute in Germany, that it was blocking traffic not only during times of peak use, but at all times of the day and night.

Meanwhile, Comcast continues to say that its network management practices were reasonable. It appears that for Comcast, arbitrarily interfering with users' online choices is reasonable and normal, an issue on which most people differ with the company. There is also the issue of the company apparently trying to cover up its practices, which implies it knew they were wrong.