nekote
join:2000-12-16
Hopkinton, MA
1 edit | Re: big deal? Yea, I sure wanna' continue down the path to re-constitute that golden era.
When the Ma Bell monopoly bean counters wanted to keep their little world just as it was.
300 baud dial up speeds.
DSL that was always just ahead, but never available.
Telephone interconnect / safety device to protect Ma Bell's phone network (for a hefty "rental fee", of course) from nasty third party phone makers.
Long Distance fees astronomical, compared to today's pennies per minute / "free" VoIP.
While I loved the standardization and universal availability, the death grip on innovation only ended via the courts - MCI's initial long distance microwave service - and then the full blown breakup.
And look at the unbelievable foot dragging by the Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers (ILEC) monopolies that hobbles the competitive CLECs, keeping them at the mercy of the ILECs.
Monopolies are a bad idea.
Fewer services, glacially slow innovation, very high prices and incredible barriers to market entry by newcomers.
Just look at what the cable providers (say, Comcast) are doing to hinder Verizon from entering "their" video / TV market. Well, Gee, cable had to get a franchise license, community by community, some 20 years ago. The new guys should have to, too, right? Plain old bare knucle resistance by a high priced monopoly to a competitive newcomer. |
