Cooperation between SMALL ISPs (not the way I want it to be)

Thu Feb 15 22:04:14 UTC 1996

On Thu, 15 Feb 1996, Michael Dillon wrote:

> The Internet market is miniscule. It is growing fast. It will continue to 
> grow fast. No one company can hope to grow fast enough to dominate in any 
> particular city. That's why you don't have to work with your local 
> competition, you just have to work with your other local ISP's in 
> building your local Internet infrastructure and growing your local 
> Internet market..

I know that and you know that, but the people that are forming the small
startup ISPs that are NOT ON THIS LIST (and don't even know about this
list) don't know that, and don't care.

As I have stated in other mail, I'm just playing devil's advocate and
looking at the position of smaller ISPs that see the 'big boys' taking
away all the users. 

I would be happy to get every new ISP in a region to work together to make
a better world for us all, but too many of them are worried more about the
$$$ bottom line than the 'good of the net', and the way they build their
$$$ bottom line is to get the most clients while the ISP across the street
goes belly up. 

I guess you could push the idea that once you manage to kill the fellow
across the street's business, you get all that address space to yourself,
but I still don't think that REAL cooperation in the small ISP marketplace
is a reality. 

Just my opinions on human & business nature.
(they may change if you give me a good reason)

I really _DO_ want the net to work, as it is my lifeblood, I just don't
see this as realistic in the current scheme of things. 

-abc
                                      \             Alan B. Clegg
         Just because I can            \            Internet Staff
        does not mean I will.           \          gateway.com, inc.
                                         \     <http://www.gateway.com/>

Cooperation between *SMALL* ISPs (not the way I want it to be)

Cooperation between SMALL ISPs (not the way I want it to be)