| A small and insignificant source of commentaries on what's going on in the world today. By Jozef Purdes. |
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In defence of Internet access From the "Luddite's View" department Once again, telecom companies are trying to convince the FCC that DSL service should be deregulated, and that they shouldn't be required to allow other DSL companies to use their lines. And once again, many people complain that with only one or two companies controlling Internet access to their homes, they could be prevented from viewing whatever they wanted. Those fears are no unfounded. After all, only a few days ago, the Canadian ISP Telus blocked over 700 Web sites it didn't like, including a breast cancer fundraising site. However, I was never too concerned about these forms of corporate abuse. Once again, corporations ared behind the technological curve, and they don't realize that a few years from now wireline Internet will be obsolete, replaced by wireless. So it wouldn't matter anymore who controlled the last mile of data cables to people's homes. Unfortunately, some companies are catching up. Take Comcast, for example. It is pressuring the Boston Logan Airport to shut down a competing, cheaper WiFi service by Continental. As a Comcast customer, I must admit that so far I never had problems with their service (after I switched to a third-party DNS server), but this is a direct attempt at creating a local monopoly, in order to retain its higher prices. The only reason it's legal is that Comcast's wireless transmitter is on someone else's private property.
And this is where the next turf wars will take place. The power of wireless transmitters will be limited, so that competition cannot cover large areas. And with the criminalizing of using others' WiFi connections, soon we'll be limited once again to either the expensive Comcast of the barely working Bell South, at least in my area. |
| © Jozef Purdes, 2003 |