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But breaking up Comcast or TW wouldn't lead to increased competition and more options for consumers. Breaking them up would not change the fact that most people
by moskie 12y ago
But breaking up Comcast or TW wouldn't lead to increased competition and more options for consumers. Breaking them up would not change the fact that most people will only have one serious option for wired internet service... it would simply change the name of the one option that a given consumer would have. The reason being that, for a given location, the permission to actually lay down the lines is going to be given typically to one company (or a select few). This means that wired internet service is not capable of being a healthy competitive market. Which leads to the conclusion that treating those lines as a utility is the right choice.
- hhw 12y agoAt the very least, they wouldn't have the overwhelming advantage when negotiating peering terms with content and carrier networks. Eyeball (broadband) networks currently have far too much power, and is the reason why they make huge profits while pretty much every primarily carrier network loses money. The cost of Internet connectivity is dependent on the cost of cable in the ground, and the cost of equipment. For both, carrier networks have to make larger (and thus riskier) capital outlays and pay a premium to operate at a larger scale. Meanwhile, the broadband networks received billions of public funds on the condition they'd ensure access in rural areas and provide a minimum level of service, both of which they haven't done yet kept the money.