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I'm assuming handset and service cost are just two of your provider's costs among many: infrastructure, salaries, debt, risk...

• nine_k 14y ago
  Hmm, I suppose that the same is correct with regard to internet providers? I mean, they build infrastructure, pay salaries, mitigate risks, and still provide orders-of-magnitude better bandwidth. This must be especially noticeable when the same company provides you with internet and a landline phone, using the same cable. OK, let's assume that 10000x difference is an unfair comparison, because a SIP phone or Skype won't work when you need to call 911 most. Maybe it takes 100 times more investment to provide for this: extra bandwidth, redundant cables and switches, redundant power — all much stronger than a typical datacenter. But even then the phone service would be 100x as cheap.
  • jws 14y ago
    The 10000x is unfair because it is based on the assumption that cost of service is a multiple of bandwidth, which is completely untrue. The article's entire premise is fiction. If you want to make a simple linear model of data costs, at least remember that linear means y = mx + b. The article left out b, which is a heck of a lot bigger than mx for phones and typical household consumption.