Comments on: Will Congress Stop the Cable Guys From Charging by the Byte?

By: Weekend Update, 4.19.09 | Beth Callaghan | Digital Daily | AllThingsD

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 17:52:22 +0000

[...] pace. In the world of cable this week, just as folks were wondering whether Congress will stop the cable companies from charging by the byte, Time Warner Cable (TWX), one of the key players in the drama, backed away from its plans to do so. [...]

By: Internet Marketing, Strategy & Technology Links - Apr 16, 2009 « Sazbean

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 12:04:10 +0000

[...] Will Congress Stop the Cable Guys From Charging by the Byte? (All Things Digital) [...]

By: Eric Welch

Eric Welch — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 15:39:53 +0000

The main reason for the caps is they don’t like having to compete with the likes of Netflix, and other VOD services when their own VOD is so grossly overpriced its ridiculous.

They are monopolies, and they resist even state-wide regulation of their municipal monopolies.

There really is no other choice than Time Warner here in this Southern California city. AT&T DSL is not competitive, and we don’t get FIOS of any kind here yet.

I think the FTC should have something to say about how cable companies act as well as the FCC. Advertising 10mbps when they actually only deliver 2 or 3 should be as illegal as misrepresenting treatment of emeralds or diamonds. Yet the latter is strictly regulated.

This is why America is so far down the list of rankings in broadband availability. It’s like the cellphone industry was before the iPhone. Dull, slow and no real innovation anywhere. Providers releasing absolutely the minimum incremental improvements to keep people buying phones every two years while maintaining ludicrous level of profits for the meager quality of service they offered.

By: Phil Leigh

Phil Leigh — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 13:24:01 +0000

One would have to be a gullible as the gatekeepers of Troy in failing to recognize that metered bandwidth is anything but an attempt to strangle Internet Video in the cradle. Unfortunately it will result in massive collateral damage since the natural evolution of the Internet is toward increasing intelligence at the end-points.

It is all so unnecessary because the Cable Operators could prosper in and environment whereby they focus on merely providing truly high-speed Internet service. There would be such an expansion of applications that broadband ISP access would become indispensable to the typical business and consumer to the everlasting benefit of CATV ISPs.

This is Third Generation Television.

http://www.insidedigitalmedia.com

By: Nokware Knight

Nokware Knight — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 00:53:44 +0000

It will also just encourage people to go back to old media. We’ve seen people shift from magazines and newspapers to internet partly because they get similar content at a cheaper net cost.

What encourages them to stay on the internet once the reason they are their is taken away? A good thing for Barnes and Noble I guess…

By: Nokware Knight

Nokware Knight — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 00:46:10 +0000

Because we actually need light, water, and electricity. We don’t NEED internet per-se. If cable companies start charging for the bandwith, I’d gather you’ll see a lot more people back in the libraries again, this time for free internet instead of free books.

I remember my phone company tried to pull the same gotcha technique with wireless internet, and I promptly pulled the plug on the service.

No way!

By: Michael Long

Michael Long — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 00:07:16 +0000

All other utility companies charge by the watt, minute, or gallon. Pay per use.

Why should bandwidth be any different?

By: Mac Beach

Mac Beach — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 21:47:56 +0000

The phone companies are no angels by any means, but I wonder why they are not having these same issues.

I regularly see the cable Internet plans advertised as being faster, sometimes much so, but reports indicate they are not always faster in actual use, there are more service disruptions and they’ve been tinkering with these hidden limits for years.

You have to wonder how the phone companies seem to be able to do so much more with a couple pieces of copper than the cable companies are doing with a much more expensive cable run.

If legislation doesn’t make this practice illegal I would hope that at least those with usage caps are required to spell out that fact in 48-point fonts on all their advertising

By: Will Congress Stop The Cable Guys From Charging By The Byte? [MediaMemo] | techclack.com

Tue, 14 Apr 2009 21:07:22 +0000

[...] Originally posted here: Will Congress Stop The Cable Guys From Charging By The Byte? [MediaMemo] [...]