Saturday, May 16, 2009
The Internet as a Free Forum
In response to my blog, a friend asked me the other day about the charged takeover of the internet; 'charge' representing both economics and, interpreted hostile, takeover. In lieu of this valid worry, I did some research, and found these two links to articles written roughly a year ago about AT&T, Comcast, and Time Warner Cable raising internet usage fees for only those users that, "download large amounts of data." Given the fact that not even this threat has been fulfilled thus far, the idea that internet usage fees may skyrocket is not a concern of mine at this time. Furthermore, it would be my best estimation that even in the event of an internet fee, printed publications would have surpassed the precarious print/online decision marker they are facing right now.
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I'd never heard of such fees until last night. A few friends from New Zealand were explaining that the way you pay for internet down there is by choosing a monthly plan of how many gigabytes of downloading and uploading you use. They told us that this included not only actual downloads but also page loads as you go from page to page. Similar to a cell phone plan, they paid 80 something in local currency (~40usd) for 10 gigs a month and often found themselves paying exorbitant over-use fees.
ReplyDeleteWe went on to discuss whether or not there will always be people capable and willing to hack through the systems of major providers. In essence, taking back the internet which we all have had a hand in creating. I sure think so, you?
i think this is to inhibit naked dsl and getting more entertainment off the internet
ReplyDeleteGiven the fact that one of the internet's leading purposes is to foster grassroots organizations and campaigns, I definitely believe that putting a charge on internet usage will not go down without a very strong fight.
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