Level 3 Communications Issues Statement Concerning Comcast'sActions

Wed Dec 1 04:05:06 UTC 2010

On Mon, Nov 29, 2010 at 10:34 PM, Owen DeLong <owen at delong.com> wrote:
>
> On Nov 29, 2010, at 9:09 PM, Andrew Koch wrote:
>
>> On Mon, Nov 29, 2010 at 22:17, William Herrin <bill at herrin.us> wrote:
>>
>>> So you're saying: treat it like electrical service. I have a 200 amp
>>> electrical service at my house. But I don't pay for a 200 amp service,
>>> I pay for kilowatt-hours of usage.
>>>
>>> There are several problems transplanting that billing model to
>>> Internet service. The first you've already noticed - marketing
>>> activity has rendered it unsalable. But that's not the only problem.
>>
>> Not quite.  Look at mobile data plans.  A very few are unlimited, most
>> are per byte.
>>
> And I am on Sprint because they are one of the few.
>
>>> Another problem is that the price of electricity has been very stable
>>> for a very long time, as has the general character of devices which
>>> consume it. Consumers have a gut understanding of the cost of leaving
>>> the light on. But what is a byte? How much to load that web page?
>>> Watch that movie? And doesn't Moore's Law mean that 18 months from now
>>> it should cost half as much? If I can't tell whether or not I'm being
>>> ripped off, I'm probably being ripped off.
>>
>> Yep, sure seems that way when I get my mobile bill with roaming data
>> charges.  Consumers learn what it costs per byte, apps are created for
>> them to manage their download amounts.  Carriers send messages
>> alerting consumers of their usage.
>>
> I simply avoid using roaming services. Frankly, my carrier could double
> their revenue from me and significantly increase their profits if they
> would offer me a global unlimited data/voice plan for twice what I currently
> pay for domestic. (If any of you cellular companies are listening, that's
> right, I'd be willing to pay ~$250/month for global unlimited voice/data
> and my usage would not increase very much above what you're already
> providing). I also happen to know that I'm not the only consumer that
> would very much like to be able to purchase this kind of service.
>

An alternative to N number of SIM cards or paying high roaming fees is
WiFi calling from cellular using UMA or GAN technologies.  I used the
T-Mobile USA Blackberry Curve to call Philly from a free WiFi access
point at a Shanghai coffee shop, worked fine. Skype probably works
too.  Yes, it only works while on WiFi, but when you are attached via
wifi it is like being attached via the home network from a billing
perspective.  While on WiFi, voice, txt, and web all work. For me, it
is a reasonable compromise when compared to roaming fees.

Shameless plug http://tinyurl.com/2vqzcrv

And, for the IPv6 enthusiast, the Nokia E73 does both GAN (wifi
calling) and IPv6 on T-Mobile's 3G network (but not together...
beta...)

Cameron
(not an unbiased source of information on america's largest 4G network)

> Owen
>
>
>