7 ms·

Perhaps I'm not thinking about this clearly, but I'm figuring that greater population density makes it less cost-effective because you have more endpoints, and

Perhaps I'm not thinking about this clearly, but I'm figuring that greater population density makes it less cost-effective because you have more endpoints, and therefore need more network branching, more wires, more intermediate nodes, more digging, and more time per square km.

khafra 17y ago
If your revenue is what you get paid every month by your subscribers, and your cost is your total mileage of fiber (plus switching equipment, upstream connection, etc.), then the more subscribers you have per mile of fiber in the ground, the higher your net income. More saliently, the justification most often trotted out when US consumers complain about being so ill-served by broadband providers is the higher population density in Japan and South Korea.
- nollidge 17y ago
  Ah, I was stupidly neglecting the profits from subscribers after the infrastructure was in place. However, wouldn't this run counter to the OP's argument that it's the free market economics preventing this from happening? With the greater profits available afterwards, why wouldn't the money-grubbing bastards invest in it?
  - tjogin 17y ago
    I'm not saying the reason for the US's poor infrastructure development is decidedly because the US has left it in the hands of the market, I'm just saying I have a feeling it has something to do with it, that it's one of the factors. In Sweden, government policy and government subsidies have ensured widespread broadband coverage, not just in major cities, but in large but sparsely populated areas as well. This is true for both internet infrastructure as well as mobile networks. It hasn't been squarely up to the market to decide which areas deserve high capacity broadband and mobile infrastructure. I remember back in 2001 when I traveled to the most northern part of the country to teach programming; Kiruna — the world's second biggest city by area, population 19,000 — had wi-fi network connectivity over the entire downtown area (which admittedly wasn't as large as it may sound). This was not due to the power of the open market. In Sweden there is no such thing as lack of cellphone connectivity. Calls suddenly disconnecting does not happen. The only reason I even know of these phenomena is because I've heard Americans speak of it. And, finally, service is cheap, dirt cheap, by US standards.
nollidge 17y ago
Sorry to get meta now, but I think this is why downvoting is a bad idea. You're discouraging me (and others) from working through any confusion they might have.

khafra 17y ago

If your revenue is what you get paid every month by your subscribers, and your cost is your total mileage of fiber (plus switching equipment, upstream connection, etc.), then the more subscribers you have per mile of fiber in the ground, the higher your net income. More saliently, the justification most often trotted out when US consumers complain about being so ill-served by broadband providers is the higher population density in Japan and South Korea.

nollidge 17y ago
Ah, I was stupidly neglecting the profits from subscribers after the infrastructure was in place. However, wouldn't this run counter to the OP's argument that it's the free market economics preventing this from happening? With the greater profits available afterwards, why wouldn't the money-grubbing bastards invest in it?
- tjogin 17y ago
  I'm not saying the reason for the US's poor infrastructure development is decidedly because the US has left it in the hands of the market, I'm just saying I have a feeling it has something to do with it, that it's one of the factors. In Sweden, government policy and government subsidies have ensured widespread broadband coverage, not just in major cities, but in large but sparsely populated areas as well. This is true for both internet infrastructure as well as mobile networks. It hasn't been squarely up to the market to decide which areas deserve high capacity broadband and mobile infrastructure. I remember back in 2001 when I traveled to the most northern part of the country to teach programming; Kiruna — the world's second biggest city by area, population 19,000 — had wi-fi network connectivity over the entire downtown area (which admittedly wasn't as large as it may sound). This was not due to the power of the open market. In Sweden there is no such thing as lack of cellphone connectivity. Calls suddenly disconnecting does not happen. The only reason I even know of these phenomena is because I've heard Americans speak of it. And, finally, service is cheap, dirt cheap, by US standards.

nollidge 17y ago

Sorry to get meta now, but I think this is why downvoting is a bad idea. You're discouraging me (and others) from working through any confusion they might have.