NNSquad - Network Neutrality Squad
[ NNSquad ] Re: Canada goes crazy
On 5/7/2010 11:01 AM, Bob Frankston wrote:
> The problem here is bad metaphors - we keep using metaphors which equate
> using with consuming. We use words but we don't' use them up.
>
>
>
> Let's be careful. Tolls on roads are generally for revenue where you have
> constrictions (can take hostages if you will). Congestion pricing is a
> separate issue and difficult. We don't put tolls on Main St even though it
> is expensive. We may try to tax entry into downtown as we do in Singapore
> and London but those are billed as controlling congestion and not as funding
> the roads.
>
>
>
> But what is being consumed? As I've written<http://rmf.vc/?n=IPPvD> the
> traditional measures of scarcity don't apply. In fact we have a dynamic in
> which demand creates supply. ...
>
While generally true, wireless service (especially in rural areas) is
does have a scarcity aspect. Wireless bandwidth is shared (as is cable
bandwidth, depending on the number of nodes per neighborhood deployed).
[ Keeping in mind that while wireless constraints are obviously
more severe, virtually all Internet access is shared at some
point, virtually by definition. Whether a choke point on
a cable system is the node topology, or on a DSL system an
oversubscribed backhaul, the overall effect can often be
much the same to subscribers.
-- Lauren Weinstein
NNSquad Moderator ]