said by skuv :said by WernerSchutz:It is NEVER about what the consumer wants when monopoly or collusion conditions exist and governments do not enforce competition conditions in order to benefit customers, as they should.
Can you point us to a company that is looking to spend millions or even billions to overbuild on top of cable or telco in any location so that they can maybe grab 10 - 20% of existing customers?
Who exactly do we think is going to do that?
There is a reason there are only 2 major providers in any area. Because they were already there, and already spent the billions to have 100% of the customers. Anyone else that comes along isn't going to get even half of the available customers. New customers that no one had are few and far between. Existing customers barely move from where they are now.
Just look at FIOS TV. It is a great service, you'd think Verizon would have more FIOS TV customers in the areas they service, but they don't have as many as they should for their cash outlay.
Why do people think that the government or even the incumbent providers are limiting the competition? Sure, those incubment providers don't want the competition, who in their right business mind would?
Sure, they fight municipal fiber projects, and maybe they shouldn't. But is it fair for a local government, that sets rules and regulations for what the telco and cableco in an area can do, to step in and spend tax payer money to build a competing business without having to go through the same regulations hoops? Who in their right business mind would sit back and let that happen?
If a 3rd or 4th company want to come into an area and offer service, and play by the same rules that the telco and cableco had to, then they are free to do so everywhere. It's the money that is stopping them. They can't compete on price if they have to spend the money required to run to every household and business, and then just hope they can get 20% of the customers to switch.
Your ignorance of the financial mechanics of municipal fiber build-outs is astounding. Re-read the Lafayette case, and the NC cases where incumbents actively tried to suppress and/or sue the people into oblivion, or, prove wrong doing and couldn't. The incumbent got a good size twelve where it would do the most good in both cases. But, like the anal-retentive rats they are, you can hear their teeth-knashing the kudzu in the dead of night, searching for an answer to a determined population who know the Telcos are a life sapping, job-robbing form of of modern robber baron's who can and will relegate the middle class and poor to a desperate on-going poverty if allowed to continue... Slavery, really.
