[clug] broadband ISPs in Canberra

[Darren Freeman]

On Sat, 2004-09-25 at 14:24, Kim Holburn wrote:
> TransACT could have offered just internet and TV.   Then they wouldn't 
> have had the legal issues.  They didn't because telephony is the cash 
> cow that drives all of what they're doing.  It's why Telstra is 
> dragging it's feet so on broadband.   Telephony has miniscule data 
> rates and enormous and complex bills.  Unfortunately this is being 
> driven by the telcos who really don't want to give up their hold on 
> your money for their very little service (in internet terms a phone 
> call is a 2Kb connection).

if you want minuscule data rate have a look at SMS =)

160 characters for 25c = 1.6 million bucks per GB of text (plus required
headers). And we all know that text compresses really well too!

Of course that's only marginally worse than 40c flagfall on hearing the
first split second of your friend's voicemail intro and hanging up. I'd
much rather pay for the exact bandwidth usage of my phone. That way, if
my friend goes to the loo it's not a problem as complete silence
compresses to nothing anyway. You know they're compressing it anyway,
they just get the better end of the deal by charging you the same. Come
to think of it I would willingly set my phone to a high compression mode
most of the time if it saved me money.

DoCoMo in Japan has <1 cent per SMS which is so much more reasonable.
You could actually afford to use the chat feature on my phone there!

> > I wonder how this will play out?  At the moment it looks like there 
> > will be some regulated and highly-reliable traditional telcos, which 
> > will increasingly be ignored by people using cheap but somewhat flaky 
> > IP services.
> 
> The telcos will die out but painfully and protractedly.

They might use MPAA-like tactics and make it illegal to have your own
free-space conversations. Your phone call would include DRM so you can't
remember your conversation without paying for it again every time you
remember it.

> Kim Holburn

Have fun,
Darren