As a counterexample, authoritarian regimes in countries with private ISPs have cut off or filtered internet access by fiat. A private ISP isn't magically exempt

As a counterexample, authoritarian regimes in countries with private ISPs have cut off or filtered internet access by fiat. A private ISP isn't magically exempt from government demands. I believe Turkey is a recent example of this. Iran is a particularly good one. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_Iran https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_censorship_in_Iran) > Every ISP must be approved by both the Telecommunication Company of Iran (TCI) and the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, and must implement content-control software for websites and e-mail. More competition in physical last mile infrastructure just isn't feasible given the costs. A single physical provider (ie fiber as a utility) with legislated common access (ie ISP competition) has worked out quite well for the rest of the western world.