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> why is it fair to let people and other providers usurp that? If you have a monopoly then there are various restrictions on what you can do. Whatsapp is prett

by bkor 8y ago

> why is it fair to let people and other providers usurp that? If you have a monopoly then there are various restrictions on what you can do. Whatsapp is pretty much the way to communicate within The Netherlands. Other companies which have a monopoly and/or huge market share (e.g. 2 companies which each have 40% of the market). This e.g. resulted in KPN (ADSL/VDSL) being forced to open up their infrastructure. I don't see how Whatsapp is earning money via their app, nor how that's relevant in case of a monopoly.

oliwarner 8y ago
Telecoms monopolies are usually required to provide fair access to competitors. BT in the UK provides a number of services to resellers and limited site access to exchanges to and cabinets. But that open access only has to be fair by law, not free. BT gets showered in cash, both to maintain the infrastructure and also provide physical access. KPN will too. Running Whatsapp isn't free. Their servers hold messages, handle authentication, developers need salaries. Third parties should have to contribute to this too. WhatsApp should get to charge for access to their infrastructure, Just like BT/KPN/etc. But now you're in a situation where competitors either pony up and swallow the cost themselves —as WhatsApp does— or we also force WhatsApp to not undercut its wholesale price, to make it less tempting. Price restrictions are common in attempts to overturn physical monopolies. Open access is a lofty goal but it also cements that protocol, those phone lines, that water pipe as the provider for that type service. It can also arrest the development of the base infrastructure, as well as putting people off developing their own alternatives. Or... We get a bit more revolutionary about things like this. If somebody makes something that becomes fundamental to society, society buys it outright. [Inter]nationalise services (and drugs, and patents, etc). In this case, buy WhatsApp, federate the service (allow people to run their own nodes) and fix the addressing so it's like email. I'm sure somebody can make cases for and against that.
RandallBrown 8y ago
Don't you need someones phone number to use WhatsApp? What happens when you just text (SMS) someone instead? Do they refuse to respond?
- ReverseCold 8y ago
  Well, groups exist. You can't join a WhatsApp group from SMS.

by bkor 8y ago

oliwarner 8y ago

Telecoms monopolies are usually required to provide fair access to competitors. BT in the UK provides a number of services to resellers and limited site access to exchanges to and cabinets. But that open access only has to be fair by law, not free. BT gets showered in cash, both to maintain the infrastructure and also provide physical access. KPN will too. Running Whatsapp isn't free. Their servers hold messages, handle authentication, developers need salaries. Third parties should have to contribute to this too. WhatsApp should get to charge for access to their infrastructure, Just like BT/KPN/etc. But now you're in a situation where competitors either pony up and swallow the cost themselves —as WhatsApp does— or we also force WhatsApp to not undercut its wholesale price, to make it less tempting. Price restrictions are common in attempts to overturn physical monopolies. Open access is a lofty goal but it also cements that protocol, those phone lines, that water pipe as the provider for that type service. It can also arrest the development of the base infrastructure, as well as putting people off developing their own alternatives. Or... We get a bit more revolutionary about things like this. If somebody makes something that becomes fundamental to society, society buys it outright. [Inter]nationalise services (and drugs, and patents, etc). In this case, buy WhatsApp, federate the service (allow people to run their own nodes) and fix the addressing so it's like email. I'm sure somebody can make cases for and against that.

RandallBrown 8y ago

Don't you need someones phone number to use WhatsApp? What happens when you just text (SMS) someone instead? Do they refuse to respond?

ReverseCold 8y ago
Well, groups exist. You can't join a WhatsApp group from SMS.