Did Internet Founders Actually Anticipate Paid, Prioritized Traffic?

Tue Sep 14 20:41:22 UTC 2010

On 9/14/2010 4:02 PM, Nathan Eisenberg wrote:
>> The consumers are saying "I want faster, as long as I don't have to pay more."
>> Content providers are saying, "If consumers had faster, I'd be able to invent
>> 'Killer App'.  I sure wish the ISPs would upgrade their networks."
>> ISPs are saying, "Why should we upgrade our networks, nobody is willing to pay
>> us to do so."
>
> Find me an ISP that is asking why they should upgrade their network if no one is going to pay them to do so.  From a business perspective, this is a ludicrous claim.  The answer is simple: because your competitors are upgrading their networks RIGHT NOW, and your customers will use them instead if you make them wait too long.
>
> There's no deadlock.  Content providers that truly have a next generation product that modern broadband isn't good enough for are stuck, like anyone else who invents something that existing infrastructure can't support.  Inventing a bizarre service prioritization model doesn't solve the infrastructure problem.
>

I don't see much competition from here.  What I am seeing is a bunch of 
ISPs sitting on their hands waiting for the Feds to unlock the USF for 
broadband, or some other form of mana from heaven.

-- 
Dave