Google today introduced Measurement Lab, a set of tools (some already working, some upcoming) for network diagnostics. To create them, Google partnered with the New America Foundation's Open Technology Institute, the PlanetLab Consortium, and several academic researchers.

These tools include the Network Diagnostic Tool, which tests your connection speed and gives you a diagnosis on speed issues; Glasnost, which tests whether your ISP is blocking or throttling BitTorrent connections, and Network Path and Application Diagnosis, which helps you find problems that usually plague last-mile broadband networks.

The thing is, tools of this kind have existed for years. There's literally dozens of them, so what Google and partners are offering is nothing new.

However, Google is making a statement here. Before, tools such as these have been reserved for network administrators, hackers and other experts; now, Google is trying to introduce them to a wider audience. It's not really that important if this wider audience will actually use these tools; what's important is the fact that Google is taking a stand, saying: we're going to help you fight for net neutrality even if the ISPs don't like it.

It wasn't an easy decision to make, even for a giant like Google. If these tools were coming from another source, the ISPs would probably simply employ measures that render them useless. However, it's much harder to block a service if Google stands behind it. On the other hand, even Google doesn't want to anger every ISP that's throttling network traffic in some way - and many of them are doing it. Net neutrality has just received a huge push; probably one that will ultimately turn the tide to its favor.