[LINK] NBN to be 1Gbps

[Fernando Cassia]

On Wed, Aug 11, 2010 at 9:36 PM, Jan Whitaker <jwhit at janwhitaker.com> wrote:

> At the end of the article:
> "It would offer unlimited download capacity at one gigabit per second
> wholesale rates to retail internet providers, but service provider
> Internode said it was not reasonable to give consumers unlimited
> downloads."
>
>
> http://www.theage.com.au/national/broadband-network-vows-to-deliver-an-even-faster-future-20100811-11ztb.html
>
>  http://snipurl.com/10kkfi
>
> --
> Why unreasonable? It is common in other countries. Why not here? My
> US friends scratch their heads when I ask if something they might do
> would take up their data quota. They don't know the concept.
>
> I think ISPs need to broaden their thinking as well.
>
> Jan
>

Hi Jan,

Speaking from the other side of the planet... I can only comment on what
happened down here six years ago. Suddenly the incumbent fixed line
providers and which have a monopoly on last-mile DSL, said they´d begin
charging for "data traffic", they wanted to include only 4 gigabytes per
user per month, and then users would have to pay extra per GB for anything
above that amount.

We users revolted, and they backed it down. Mainly because their main
competition (Cable TV ISPs) saw this as an opportunity to get an edge on
cable vs. DSL, and began advertising "Limit-free" broadband.

Now, metered broadband is only enforced by 3G service from mobile providers.

It all comes down to maximising profits. Why give away something that you
can charge for?. It´s the same with cable TV. In the beginning, 20 years
ago, cable TV was all a flat rate, all-you-can eat proposal. Now more and
more channels are becoming "pay per view".

I think it has to do with the business mindset, which knows no limits,
unless governments impose them on them. In the analog world, you purchased
an original movie on VHS and you could watch it as many times as you wanted.
But suddenly Hollywood got greedy and they´d rather prefer you to stream
movies, so you get charged every time you press PLAY....

Have you watched the documentary "The Corporation" by Canadian film maker
Mark Achbar? (Not to be confused with a fiction movie bearing the same
name).

Best regards,
FC
Buenos Aires, Argentina