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 funchordsHelloPremium,MVM
join:2001-03-11
Yarmouth Port, MA
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1 edit | Not just competitors, but also consumer groups... (I am a representative for New America Foundation in the No Choke Points coalition.)
Just a note that there are a number of Public Interest groups here, including NAF, Public Knowledge, Media Access Project, and US PIRG (and maybe others that I am forgetting).
The lack of competition in this space raises prices and/or eliminates access to those who can least manage it. The situation is one of a choke point, a geeky term for a bottleneck or a single point of failure.
Ironically, the problem isn't geeky at all, it is as simple as buying popcorn in a movie theater -- because you have no other choices than to do without, you'll pay $7 for the popcorn that costs less than $1 to make. Estimates are that the inflated Special Access prices are like the popcorn example, because 90% of the market is controlled by AT&T and Verizon and it is deregulated nearly everywhere.
You, the consumers, pay for this because the communications prices are inflated higher for stores, banks, and health-care providers. If you're a WISP customer, your network can be slower to build out. WISPs can only charge what consumers can bear and can't build out the network if all of the money goes to pay the backhaul bill. Plus the data commitment and early-termination conditions put on Special Access service are so crazy that it creates a high barrier to entry that the would-be last-mile providers just can't break ground.
While AT&T and Verizon do deserve a fair profit that encourages more growth, we've had years of non-regulation and inflated profits and little real growth. What we've seen is a choke point to our progess. AT&T and Verizon can and should be part of the solution and should be rewarded for doing so, but the current situation is choking off progress.
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Robb Topolski -= funchords.com =- District of Columbia -- KJ7RL
Test your Broadband connection today! -- »measurementlab.net/ | |
3 edits | The so-called "consumer groups" that are lobbying on this issue are all, essentially, lobbying arms of Google. (One, the New America Foundation, is for all practical purposes owned by Google; it gave the group big money and installed its CEO as chairman.) They're not there to help consumers; they are there to get lower prices on bandwidth for Google. There is actually a serious issue here with regard to broadband deployment and competition, but those lobbying groups are involved for the wrong reason. | |
| So what. Politics make stange bed fellows.
Back in the day when Bell Atlantic (NYCE/Verizon) couldn't maintain DSL worth shit during the Boston rollout, Covad came to my rescue with rock stable service.
This is about maintaining meaningful competition, especially considering the copper was laid at taxpayer expense. | |
1 edit | said by bostonkarl1:So what. Politics make stange bed fellows. And if you get into bed with the wrong person, you may regret it for the rest of your (possibly drastically shortened) life. | |
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