Canadian Broadband → Re: Michael Geist refocuses the debate on UBB

"penalized for using your connection to its fullest potential"

There's a statement that needs some history to understand why I disagree.

TO make a very long story as short as possible ...

Internet is oversold ... it has to be to make it affordable.

Most users want a comparatively little bit of data when you look at the maximum they can get from the speed of their connection, because they want that data FAST. For the amount most people download, we should all be happy with a connection under 600Kbps ... but I don't know of many who would be!

So, ISPs sell a fast connection on the basis that they don't expect you to use it flat out. Now we have about 50 users sharing a connection. If you use your connection to its fullest potential, then 49 other people are going to have a shitty online experience! Fortunately few people actually do use it flat out!

BUT do our ISPs actually tell us this? Nope. They put nasty clauses in teh terms of service, like "Your use of the service should not interfere with its enjoyment by others in our sole opinion".

You aren't paying for a 5Mbps service ... you're paying for 600Kbps service that will speedboost when available to 5Mbps.

Good eh?

That's what congestion's about ... and that problem is worse on cable because the upstream *is* a limited commodity!

Again, these are details they either have to make clear, or not obfuscate so much to me as a consumer.

I buy a rate of transmission, if I can't be guaranteed a level of service, then something is seriously wrong.

Again, I want to be able to use my connection to it's fullest and if I sign up for an 8Mbit connection, why should I not expect it when all the literature up until that point indicates that I should?

Sorry - I'm not really this naive. What I'm eluding to there is that marketers have gone too far. If that is the case. And I have no reason not to believe you sbrook

Not to try and confuse the issue any further, but the public is entitled to a certain level of service as well. As a result of public infrastructure or investment.

This is a subject I'm a little hazy on and am dying to know just how much - especially here in Manitoba - of our network is actually ours and how much is out of our reach.