 jmn1207Premium
join:2000-07-19
Ashburn, VA | Yea for Capitalism!! I use Skype for attending meeting while I'm working from home. The 800 Webex numbers are free and the sound quality is much better than anything short of being in the same room. Both IM and Skype are useful communications tools where I work. Blocking either would be silly and counterproductive. To prevent abuses, all of our traffic is potentially monitored and the bandwidth and the computer resources that are used are minimal on most relatively new machines and network infrastructures.
If the ISP's are only pushing for this type of equipment so they can sell their own products that are most likely inferior in quality, shame on them. If they are that determined to ruin customer relations and services in the pursuit of making a profit, why not just use the bandwidth exclusively for downloading advertisements and junk mail?
What's next, photos of the baby sent to grandma blocked because it is not cost effective to the ISP? How about the cable TV cutting out for an hour if a motion sensor on the box senses that you left for the kitchen or bathroom during a commercial break? I hate the double dipping. I pay $60 a month so that I can take advantage of the many offerings and free services that I can utilize with my expensive internet connection. If I am going to be charged for each IM, credit card purchase, download, upload, stream, or voice communication, then sell the base service at a reduced cost. If they take all of the incentive to have high-speed internet away from the customer, how many will still be willing to fork over big bucks?
Everyone wants to make a profit, but a lot of people are pinching pennies now as the all-mighty dollar just doesn't put as much food on the table right now. Skype is gaining in popularity at an alarming rate (at least to ISP's apparently) because it is an alternative to using otherwise expensive means to communicate. If they expect people to dump loads of cash into a cable-owned VOIP application after crippling free/cheaper services, they've got some work to do in their marketing divisions. |
