"I couldn't possibly fail to disagree with you less."
25 December 2007Another wall to break downI did enough time at the phone company to know the litany: business services are priced high so as to subsidize residential services and keep those prices low. This might have even made sense in, oh, 1980 or so. Not anymore:
It's critical to get rid of prices that discriminate against businesses. Far as I know, all phone and cable companies in the U.S. still charge through the nose for "business" service that is hardly any different than home service. For example, Verizon's FiOS (fiber) for Business prices are far higher than for their ordinary consumer service. To the company's credit, it's beginning to offer symmetrical service for both consumers and businesses. But the consumer/business distinction needs to go away. The sum of production coming out of homes will make the "consumer" label an archaic misnomer.
Be it noted that I have a lot more bandwidth at Surlywood than at 42nd and Treadmill — downstream, anyway. (My uploads are capped at 600 kb, and I mean 599.9; the T1 line at work is 1.5 mb in either direction.) Eventually, I suppose, you're going to have to deal with both a line company and a bandwidth company: transport and traffic will be two separate services. But I don't expect the dinosaurs to become extinct overnight. Posted at 12:11 PM to Common CentsAll phone companies charge more for business services than residential, as phones are necessary to operate a business. (Note: circumvent by cell phone.) All electric companies and natural gas companies do too. OTOH I do not know why the Cox cable charges more for business television service, other than they are just greedy bazturds in general. Most businesses (bars being the notable exception) have no need for TV in the workplace outside of storm season, and rabbit-ears work just fine for that. Posted by: Dan B at 8:02 AM on 27 December 2007 |