symmetric vs. asymmetric [was: Verizon Policy Statement on Net Neutrality]

Mon Mar 2 20:31:35 UTC 2015

> On Mar 2, 2015, at 08:28 , Lamar Owen <lowen at pari.edu> wrote:
> 
> On 02/28/2015 05:46 PM, Mark Andrews wrote:
>> Home users should be able to upload a content in the same amount
>> of time it takes to download content.
> This.
> 
> Once a week I upload a 100MB+ MP3 (that I produced myself, and for which I own the copyright) to a cloud server.  I have a reasonable ADSL circuit at home, but it takes quite a bit of my time to upload that one file.  Even if the average BW was throttled to 512k, it would be really nice to have 7Mb/s up for just a minute or ten so I can shut the machine down and go to bed.  Cloud services are becoming the choice for all kinds of content distribution, and there are more content creators out there than you might think who need to do exactly what I need to do.

How much of your downstream bandwidth are you willing to give up in order to get that?

Let’s say your current service is 10Mbps/512Kbps. Would you be willing to switch to 3Mbps/7Mbps in order to achieve what you want?

What about 5.25Mbps/5.25Mbps? (same total bandwidth, but split symmetrically)?

> And, well, I still use my connection in much the same way as I used dialup, turning it off when I'm not using it.  I almost never leave it up all night; if my router isn't online it can't be used for malicious purposes, etc.  And, no, I have no alternatives to the ILEC's DSL here, as 3G/4G cell service simply doesn't get to my house (now on the ridge behind my house, great 4G bandwidth, but I'm down in a valley, and the shadowing algorithm's show the story; I ran a Splat simulation from the cell tower site; across the creek from my house is the edge of one of the diffraction zones where good service can be found, and my house is in a deep null….)

I think you’re in the minority bothering to turn your router off at night. In my case, since I am hosting some services, turning off the routers wouldn’t fly anyway, but I recognize I’m nowhere near the average home user.

As to the rest, your situation isn’t even unusual in the united States, no matter how much the ILECs continue to try and claim otherwise. In reality, 3G/4G cell service isn’t a competition anyway because it’s very hard to get decent service and bandwidth for anything approaching cost effective.

Owen