[LINK] The PLAN, and broadband speeds?

[Stewart Fist]

 Marghanita wrote:
> Karl/Stewart - Copper was laid before we had wireless and before both
> cables and wireless communication became digital

We need to look at an old concept of economics that appears to be forgotten
these days - that of 'social utility'

When copper was laid to remote parts of Australia, the economic and social
benefits that were gained by the society as a whole (not just the individual
or the family) were very substantial.  These included analog phone access to
information about weather, markets, health resources, etc.

These probably repaid the cost of the copper inside a few years.  Sitting in
Sydney, I still benefited from better roads and telephone lines into a
cattle station in the Kimberleys, simply because this infrastructure
increases the ability of the nation to export, and this allows me to buy my
imported computer.


But when, today, people in the outback want to move from a radio-based
system providing, say 25 mb/s, and acquire a direct fibre link for no good
reason other than to watch 4 HDTV channels, and perhaps have future access
to some mythical high-bandwidth requirement we haven't even thought about
... then that infrastructure has little or no economic of social utility
value that I can discern.

And it certainly has nothing that can't be supplied by satellites or
wireless services attached to the ends of fibre.

Its the difference been needs and wants.

In such circumstances, if the individual WANTS, but does not NEED fibre,
then let him pay for it himself.  These constant claims of country people
for equal services to those in the cities, are ridiculous when they move
from Needs to Wants.

As a taxpayer, I am only willing to contribute my share of infrastructure
that is needed logically by people in remote areas, but not necessarily what
they want.

They choose to have this remote lifestyle, and benefit from such things as
the tranquility of wide open spaces which is not available to people in the
cities.  No one forces them to live there.



-- 
Stewart Fist, writer, journalist, film-maker
70 Middle Harbour Road, LINDFIELD, 2070, NSW, Australia
Ph +61 (2) 9416 7458