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Comments on news posted 2012-09-17 08:48:27: Time Warner Cable says they're not worried about Google Fiber and the company's $70 symmetrical 1 Gbps fiber offering, despite the fact the speeds dwarf Time Warner Cable's fastest offering (50 Mbps). ..

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jacour
Premium Member
join:2001-12-11
Matthews, NC

jacour

Premium Member

What, me worry?

Meet the Alfred E. Newman of the communications industry.
neufuse
join:2006-12-06
James Creek, PA

neufuse

Member

it'd be funny if...

google came out and said, we have plans to deploy to all major cities within 10 years or something... see what Verizon, TWC, and Comcast do then... even if google doesn't it'd in the end after saying it, it would still whip them up into an oh crap what do we do frenzy

Chiyo
Save Me Konata-Chan
Premium Member
join:2003-02-20
Salisbury, NC

Chiyo

Premium Member

Sadly I think she is right. I think we are stuck with what we have and won't be seeing any national fiber deployments anytime soon. I hope I'm wrong but we'll see.
Bhruic
join:2002-11-27
Toronto, ON

Bhruic

Member

Sad

I like how it's not "we can compete on price", or "we can offer a better service". I mean those would be obvious lies, but still, that they don't even bother to try and promote their own services is pretty damning.

jamaicaplain
@comcast.net

jamaicaplain

Anon

Google Fiber

The important issue of Google Fiber isn't the amount of direct competition it poses to TWC but rather the demonstration of what is possible and what dinosaurs the incumbents are.
elefante72
join:2010-12-03
East Amherst, NY

elefante72 to Bhruic

Member

to Bhruic

Re: Sad

Disruption is a biatch. You have to dismiss, because it's light years better--until it really starts hurting. Then you pay off your local congress or legislature to erect artificial barriers.

In my area if you pay more than $100 for a 3-play you are a sucker. TWC just threw me a deal for $89 for a year, a free home DVR and 3 months of pay channels. Of course we have robust competition and I have FIOS. My brother who lives in a TWC-only area pays $160 for the same gig minus the whole home DVR, it would be $200/mo.

TRUE competition in open markets is better for everyone...Of course the weak companies die, but that is what should happen, not kept afloat by government regulation and protection.

I imagine if Google said Baltimore, Buffalo, Boston..I'm here Verizon wouldn't take a dump... I guess VZ doesn't like B's....
milrtime83
join:2009-11-04
Katy, TX

milrtime83

Member

heh

Eighth competitor?? Can he really say that with a straight face?

antdude
Matrix Ant
Premium Member
join:2001-03-25
US

antdude

Premium Member

Come on, Google (and others)!

Spread your fiber and cause some competitions!
axus
join:2001-06-18
Washington, DC

axus to Bhruic

Member

to Bhruic

Re: Sad

I think she's saying Google is providing service at a loss. Of course the first location will cost more as they learn the business. It's a good question for Google. If they can't break even, it makes no sense to expand.

They only need to break even, to drive down competitor prices and get more people online, viewing ads.
elray
join:2000-12-16
Santa Monica, CA

1 recommendation

elray to Chiyo

Member

to Chiyo

Re: it'd be funny if...

KC will demonstrate, at the expense of Google shareholders and taxpayers, once again, that only a minority population is willing to pay the price for fiber speeds.

Google is not offering a competitive product.

Time Warner has little to worry about unless Google un-bundles its TV tier and substantially lowers prices.
tmc8080
join:2004-04-24
Brooklyn, NY

tmc8080

Member

these things start small..

yeah, and California's getting hit with the highest gasoline prices in the country.. no wonder they're pushing ethanol, natural gas, electricity and hydrogen..

when the incumbent monopoly & duopolies break the last straw, there will be a reckoning.. and while it's doubtful it will come from google fiber (they've as much as said they won't take it nationally) there are alot of geographies which are very complacent about utilizing 50 year old copper and letting customers suffer from no competition and decades old technology while collecting higher and higher tolls for what services they can provide on antique equipment (some of which is DSL)
Wilsdom
join:2009-08-06

Wilsdom to Bhruic

Member

to Bhruic

Re: Sad

Yeah, they don't really care about the product at all, just their profits. TW could probably roll out 100/15 for half the cost of Google Fiber, but since there is no pressure they are happy to pile up the money. Now that DSL is giving up in most areas they're actually more likely to degrade service. Rolling back to 5mb/s is probably too shocking and might get government attention, but metering could be a great opportunity
Skippy25
join:2000-09-13
Hazelwood, MO

Skippy25 to elray

Member

to elray

Re: it'd be funny if...

Please ship me some of what you are smoking as I want to go through life being as delusional as you.

El Quintron
Cancel Culture Ambassador
Premium Member
join:2008-04-28
Tronna

El Quintron

Premium Member

said by Skippy25:

Please ship me some of what you are smoking as I want to go through life being as delusional as you.

It's called "shill-weed" and it only grows in corporate boardrooms and PR offices. The stuff is garbage anyways...
oratam
join:2007-12-21
Stockton, NJ

oratam

Member

heh

I love how people say Google is not going to make money. I wonder how valuable the data will be to advertisers who can not only see where the commercials are being seen as well as well as dictate where the commercials are being shown. With google's advertising background as well as profiles they developed over the internet to tailor ads to the specific customer, they can extend this considerably to the television commercials. That is a premium market that they could charge more to advertisers. I believe the only reason they haven't announced nationwide expansion is to limit the fallout until they establish the foothold. Do see any phone company not opening up the war chest to fight them?

The next part is when they establish how much of a boon and economic growth develops from the fiber. How many companies come to the area to cut down on bandwidth costs. How many startups open up because of it. How many people move to the area. Do you think any politician will not turn down a chance to add that economic growth to his or her proverbial resume.
Os
join:2011-01-26
US

Os to elray

Member

to elray

Re: it'd be funny if...

Really? How much will 10/1 internet and basic digital cable cost you from TWC? I bet you more than $120 unless you're on a yearly promo.
xenophon
join:2007-09-17

xenophon to oratam

Member

to oratam

Re: heh

Google will also be able to cross-reference viewing habits with other services, searches, wallet, g+ etc. They could sell data to advertisers that people watching xyz show is also buying these products from G Wallet or is searching xyz things.

They could come up with a method for advertisers to launch a website on the remote (Nexus tablet) when the TV ad appears, allowing viewer to impulse buy directly from tablet using G Wallet. That's far more powerful for advertisers than what trad broadcasters can do.
34764170 (banned)
join:2007-09-06
Etobicoke, ON

34764170 (banned) to elray

Member

to elray

Re: it'd be funny if...

said by elray:

Google is not offering a competitive product.

You either smoke some good shit or have some serious mental issues.
me1212
join:2008-11-20
Lees Summit, MO

me1212 to elray

Member

to elray
You do realize that the so called fibre costs are about what tw charges for 50mb right?

alchav
join:2002-05-17
Saint George, UT

alchav to neufuse

Member

to neufuse
said by neufuse:

google came out and said, we have plans to deploy to all major cities within 10 years or something... see what Verizon, TWC, and Comcast do then... even if google doesn't it'd in the end after saying it, it would still whip them up into an oh crap what do we do frenzy

Google did say that years ago, and to this day they still don't have a good Plan for Fiber deployment. Verizon is the only one that has a good Fiber Plan, and now they are even going to raise their prices. If you want lots of Fast Bandwidth, Verizon is about the only show in town with good FTTH. Google still doesn't have a Plan for that Last Mile, and all you guys here think just drop the Fiber from the closes Pole! That's not a Plan, that's ugly disaster waiting to happen!
LucasLee
join:2010-11-26

LucasLee to elray

Member

to elray
said by elray:

only a minority population is willing to pay the price for fiber speeds.

today, perhaps.
but it's silly to build infrastructure that will be outdated by tomorrow.

El Quintron
Cancel Culture Ambassador
Premium Member
join:2008-04-28
Tronna

El Quintron to 34764170

Premium Member

to 34764170
said by 34764170:

said by elray:

Google is not offering a competitive product.

You either smoke some good shit or have some serious mental issues.

Never one to mince words are ya?

David
Premium Member
join:2002-05-30
Granite City, IL

David to Chiyo

Premium Member

to Chiyo
said by Chiyo:

Sadly I think she is right.

I think she's right too.
said by Chiyo:

I think we are stuck with what we have and won't be seeing any national fiber deployments anytime soon. I hope I'm wrong but we'll see.

Agreed, unless you can get investors on board with a decent return on investment, or government paying the full bill, you are very correct.
elray
join:2000-12-16
Santa Monica, CA

elray to Os

Member

to Os
said by Os:

Really? How much will 10/1 internet and basic digital cable cost you from TWC? I bet you more than $120 unless you're on a yearly promo.

Sorry, but promos are the way of the world. I don't like it either, but we manage to use them year after year to achieve reasonable pricing.

We disconnected basic cable years ago when things went digital, and we haven't looked back since. IF we were to order same, today, we would get "basic digital cable" and 10/1 service for $60/month with a 1-year price guarantee, after which it would more than double if we didn't renegotiate.

I experience similar offerings for Cox and Charter in nearby areas; Comcast is more difficult, always has been, makes U-Verse seem competitive.

We currently pay $30/month for 10/1 with a 1-year price guarantee. We can downgrade to 3/1 for $20/month.

We have a 10Gbit fiber ring six feet from my door that my tax money paid for over a decade now, but neither the Muni nor AT&T will let us access it.
elray

1 recommendation

elray to me1212

Member

to me1212
said by me1212:

You do realize that the so called fibre costs are about what tw charges for 50mb right?

Yes, of course.

Do you realize that most households aren't interested in paying $70/month for broadband?

Most households don't require 50mbit, or 20mbit - they're happy with 3Mbit, so fiber isn't the issue you think it is. Verizon has proven this for years with Fios.

The households I've converted over the past few years are coming from DSL speeds of 80-144kbps (and less!). 3-7M cable (typical offering) blows them away.

skuv
@rr.com

skuv to me1212

Anon

to me1212
You do realize that price for Google fiber is being supported by free access from KC government to buildings, right?

They aren't offering free building access for TWC to house their equipment.

Or that the price is just a loss leader for promotion?

So technically, it is not a competitive price, if you factor in the costs it would actually take to deliver this.
Crookshanks
join:2008-02-04
Binghamton, NY

Crookshanks to elray

Member

to elray
said by elray:

Verizon has proven this for years with Fios.

I think you meant to say DSL?

Concur with the sentiment of your post. Once you get over 3mbit/s it's really gravy to the average user. They don't notice a difference. The only users who might are those who are interested in HD streaming, but the last time I checked that can be accomplished at 5mbit/s on Netflix, so once again, these double digit speeds are unnecessary for most.

What's going to suck is I can see the MSOs eliminating the slower tiers in the future. This is essentially what the wireless carriers are doing with voice plans, and it doesn't require a huge leap of faith to see the same happening with broadband. Offer a crippled product at today's prices (say 1mbit/s for $40/mo), an excessive product that most don't need for much more (50mbit/s for $70/mo), with nothing in between, then roll around naked in the resulting pile of cash like Scrooge McDuck.
elray
join:2000-12-16
Santa Monica, CA

1 edit

elray

Member

said by Crookshanks:

said by elray:

Verizon has proven this for years with Fios.

I think you meant to say DSL?

Concur with the sentiment of your post. Once you get over 3mbit/s it's really gravy to the average user. They don't notice a difference. The only users who might are those who are interested in HD streaming, but the last time I checked that can be accomplished at 5mbit/s on Netflix, so once again, these double digit speeds are unnecessary for most.

What's going to suck is I can see the MSOs eliminating the slower tiers in the future. This is essentially what the wireless carriers are doing with voice plans, and it doesn't require a huge leap of faith to see the same happening with broadband. Offer a crippled product at today's prices (say 1mbit/s for $40/mo), an excessive product that most don't need for much more (50mbit/s for $70/mo), with nothing in between, then roll around naked in the resulting pile of cash like Scrooge McDuck.

No, I mean Fios.

Verizon can't achieve much more than 30% penetration with Fios. The super-majority of potential customers aren't willing to pay the premium they charge. This has been consistent for seven years.

Google, EPB, et al, aren't going to achieve any greater subscription levels if they're charging $60-70/month for standalone broadband, in a marketplace where the MSO has a $20-40 option, or the Telco has a decent copper offering.

Not until those higher speeds become useful to Mom.

As for "rolling in cash", I think if you put aside the hyperbole, and instead, examined the annual returns, you would find that profit margins at the large MSOs and telcos isn't that spectacular year to year - and if it is, why don't you own their stock?
Core0000
Premium Member
join:2008-05-04
Somerset, KY

Core0000 to Chiyo

Premium Member

to Chiyo
I agree... if big wigs like her are in charge, we'll probably never see anything truly advancing such as fiber to the home happen... *sighs* I wish NewWaveCommunications hadn't sold to TimeWarner in my area...

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
Premium Member
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

IowaCowboy

Premium Member

I wish we had Time Warner in town

I wish Time Warner would buy the cable system in Springfield, MA and the surrounding communities. I have experience with Comcast (my house) and Time Warner (grandma's house in Maine) and Time Warner is cheaper and they have somewhat better customer service. I would also like to see Charter given the boot in the towns around here they serve. Many of the locals here say that Charter is the Worst of the Worst around here and luckily I at least have Comcast in town where I live. Even the mayor of Chicopee blasted Charter.
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