Bad Idea

Author	All Replies
Perseus @ccmaine.net	Bad Idea The government needs to stay out of it and allow the free market and consumer demand to work. Costs of cell phone service have gone down over the years. Flat rate plans are now available and will continue to go down in cost so long as the government doesn't regulate. Look at Internet access for example. When I started in this business, people were paying $40 a month for 30 hours of dial-up Internet access. Now you can buy DSL for $20. The lack of regulation allowed ISPs to pay for their network costs and maintenance (and make a profit, which is the whole point of being in business and is how you get paid each payday). Allow the same model to work with cell phones. Regulating carriers with stupid bills like this will result in higher rates for a longer period of time, just like with landlines. Anyone notice that post-deregulation there are now flat rates for phone service and nobody is paying 35 cents a minute for long distance? Allow the companies to compete in a free market, and over time the rates will come down and the ETFs will as well. Force it prematurely and you will put some companies out of business and you will see higher rates for a longer time.
Perseus @ccmaine.net	to forum · permalink · 2009-12-04 11:37:16 ·
wierdo join:2001-02-16 Tulsa, OK Reviews: ·Cox HSI ·T-Mobile US	said by Perseus : Allow the companies to compete in a free market, and over time the rates will come down and the ETFs will as well. Force it prematurely and you will put some companies out of business and you will see higher rates for a longer time. The facts are inconveniently against your argument. The cost of wireless service at most companies has only increased in the past three or four years. at&t's current plans are significantly more expensive for a similar number of minutes than the plan I'm on. -- It's wierdo, not weirdo. Yes, I know that's not the 'proper' spelling of the similar english language word.
	to forum · permalink · 2009-12-04 13:00:50 ·
elray join:2000-12-16 Santa Monica, CA Reviews: ·SONIC.NET ·RoadRunner Cable	said by wierdo: The facts are inconveniently against your argument. The cost of wireless service at most companies has only increased in the past three or four years. at&t's current plans are significantly more expensive for a similar number of minutes than the plan I'm on. Nonsense. My cellphone bill has dropped dramatically in the past two years, and I've never worried about an ETF. My cost per minute continues to drop, year after year. If you take responsibility for your own actions, you won't find yourself worrying about exit penalties. Fancy, luxury PDA phones are not cheap. If you feel you must have one, then don't cry when the carrier makes you sign a guarantee to pay off the real cost of the phone after it has lost its luster and you want to move on.
	to forum · permalink · 2009-12-04 17:20:50 ·
wierdo join:2001-02-16 Tulsa, OK Reviews: ·Cox HSI ·T-Mobile US	Just as a point of fact, my at&t plan includes 150 more minutes a month at the same price point I have now. Additionally, the price of data has increased by $10 in the last five years. And just FWIW, I'm not on contract and haven't been since 2004. I don't buy phones from at&t, I buy unlocked phones, thanks, so don't start in with the ad hominems. The only thing competition has done recently is get us incredibly expensive unlimited voice plans. For my usage patterns, unlimited m2m and n&w minutes are plenty. Until about 2004, there was enough competition in the market to drive rates ever lower. In 1998 I was paying $80 or $90 a month for 400 minutes with no mobile to mobile or night and weekend minutes good anywhere in the US. (not long prior to that, there wasn't such a thing as free roaming nationwide) By 2001, I was up to 550 minutes for $70 a month. In 2004, I started paying $70 a month but also got 850 minutes, unlimited mobile to mobile, unlimited nights and weekends, and a second line. Today I could get fewer minutes for the same money, but with no added benefits. Perhaps that's because there are fewer competitors than there once were. I wouldn't know, I'm not an economist. -- It's wierdo, not weirdo. Yes, I know that's not the 'proper' spelling of the similar english language word.
	to forum · permalink · 2009-12-06 06:25:46 ·

New Bill Aims To Limit ETFs > Bad Idea