We have tried that repeatedly, with Google Fiber and Clear and others and it has failed repeatedly. I don't think you are going to ever see it for the following reasons:
1) The large data consumer apps are watching TV over the Internet. Back in "the olden days" when you bought "cable tv" service it was still data on the back end. Now it's data all the way to the customer and they are watching TV on smart tv's and web browsers. So the content providers who want the best experience for their customers have to put media servers close to the customers. The major content providers - the movie studios - Disney, Paramount, and so on - are busy killing off Hulu and Netflix and the other 2nd raters who thought they could build a business model out of brokering content they didn't create. Those studios are fine with putting media servers at the major ISPs like Comcast, Century Link/Lumen, and so on because those companies have tons of subscribers. But they won't put media servers at small ISP's thus leading to a poor experience watching TV on a small ISP 2) The largest ISPs avoid having to buy Internet connectivity themselves by selling Internet connectivity on their network via peering agreements. So for example Verizon has a fiber circuit from PDX to LAX and Lumen has a fiber circuit from PDX to LAX and they both agree to pay each other no money but instead share each other's circuits and thus get access to each other's customers. In reality peering agreements are a lot more complex but you get the idea. The large ISPs only have to pay for the actual cost of maintaining the fiber they don't have to pay the marked-up cost of buying a running circuit from someone else. 3) The FTC long ago made the decision that land line and cellular providers are selling the same thing (they are not but the FTC is run by old white guys who thing Internet is a misspelling of what Skippy sells in jars) and so all you need is a monopoly telephone company in one area and a cellular company and immediately the Sherman Anti-trust act no longer applies. Some people more cynical than I might assume that this has something to do with the government trying to move the cost of providing rural Internet service (which is a money-loser) on to the city folks instead of just asking the city folks if you want to pay taxes to fund rural Internet expansion, and furthermore it's just another example of the increased voting power of the rural folk being able to pull the pants down once more on the city dwellers but we won't talk about that, LOL The ISP market is much like the soft drink market. Market forces serve to keep Coke and Pepsi selling 90% of the sugar water that people drink. Ted -----Original Message----- From: PLUG <[email protected]> On Behalf Of MC_Sequoia Sent: Monday, March 6, 2023 7:23 PM To: Portland Linux/Unix Group <[email protected]> Cc: General Linux/UNIX discussion and help, civil and on-topic <[email protected]> Subject: Re: [PLUG] Verizon towers for internet IMHO, there needs to be much more internet service competition. Ideally not between 2 giant corporations/monopolies.
