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November 01, 2005
Net Neutrality Will Triumph
Posted by Dana Blankenhorn
A lot of people are (rightfully) upset over SBC CEO Ed Whitacre's recent statements dismissing the concept of network neutrality.
Given that SBC will take the AT&T name once its merger with that company is complete it has many fearfully humming the theme from "Empire Strikes Back," seeing the Death Star in the sky again, preparing to see the Internet lights turned off all over the world. (The song is now a favorite of every Enormous State University band, usually played in the Third Quarter as Little Sisters of the Poor are crushed.)
Frankly, Mr. Whitacre is an idiot. There are many reasons why net neutrality, and not paid content access, will triumph in the U.S.:
- Google is one of the largest owners of dark fiber in the world. That's what their San Francisco WiFi bid is really all about. They need to fill that fiber, and WiFi can easily render wired phones (and lines) obsolete.
- Sprint has some interesting deals going with cable companies that create a "triple play" with cable networks combining phone, mobile, and television service. Network neutrality in that offering could cause millions to switch off their phones.
- Level 3 can easily link their fiber backhaul capacity to new providers via WiFi and WiMax, delivering another alternative for consumers.
- People aren't stupid. Consumers understand what the concept of network neutrality means. If it's threatened they will demand it from regulators and Congress.
- The U.S. is an increasingly small portion of the Internet. Continued slow growth will make the U.S. an economic backwater, and people know that.
The fact is that Whitacre is a Bellhead, playing an old game of monopoly based on media power. The Internet routes around such games. And the Internet is the market, not the dial tone.
My guess is Whitacre will be quietly told these facts after the consummation of the merger, either by his own people or those he tries to stick-up for access to his customers. If he doesn't get the message, an ad campaign from Google, Sprint, or some consortia of companies (perhaps with Bill Gates as its TV spokesman) will do the trick.
He can back away slowly, or he can back away in utter humiliation. But the idea he won't back away is Clueless.
Comments (6)
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Dana Blankenhorn has been a business journalist for over 25 years and has covered the online world professionally since 1985. He founded the "Interactive Age Daily" for CMP Media, and has written for the Chicago Tribune, Advertising Age, and dozens of other publications over the years.
1. Robert J. Berger on November 1, 2005 06:01 PM writes...
That's what the Jedi Council said just before they were wiped out by the Emporer crazed with "absolute power".
Wireless will not save the day. Even copper can carry an order of magnitude more dedicated bandwidth than any wireless technology on the current horizon. Wireless is not enough to "route around" the RBOC/Cable Oligopoly.
Congress is full of Jar Jar's (people willing to give away power to the rulers) and the Bush Administration is full of sophisticated Siths (people willing to steal power at any cost and without any fear of consequences).
As long as this is the state of things, we can not expect the oligopolies to be stopped from using their last mile chokepoints to try to control content.
And thinking that the citizens aren't stupid? The majority voted for Bush twice and over 51% of the surveyed population thinks that evolution should not be considered as the basis of how we got here.
Permalink to Comment2. John Thorazine on November 2, 2005 01:06 PM writes...
People in some form or another have always had the ability to control information. Newspapers, Radios, Televisions; even people standing in a park and shouting on a box. The internet is no different from any of these other mediums. In this case the people with the power cannot necessarily control the content but they can control the access to said content.
In actuality, its a very small portion of the population that would be upset by such impositions; Mostly college students and herb smokers who play capture the flag games online. We need to trust in God and our blessed leaders to protect us from ourselves. Peace be with you all.
Permalink to Comment3. Jesse Kopelman on November 2, 2005 01:35 PM writes...
We are still early in the series. It is not yet clear whether Roberts, Whitacre, Seidenberg, or someone else will emerge as the emperor. Perhaps, Whitacre is merely Dooku. I think it is pretty clear, however, that the empire will emerge and the Jedi will be defeated. However, I'm pretty sure A New Hope will rise in the form of new or re-energized small ISPs and the Jedi will Return. People may be generally stupid, but as consumers they are smart enough to avoid those who do not give them what they want in favor of those who do. As the US becomes a less the focus of global technology, all the good and fun stuff will be out on the real Internet, not a Bell or Cableco intranet. The same thing that happened to AOL at the end of the 90s will happen to the new pretenders at the end of this decade. Then the cycle will most likely start again.
Permalink to Comment4. Thuktun on November 2, 2005 03:53 PM writes...
Apparently the Star Wars™ analogy resonates.
Permalink to Comment5. Auntie Biotix on November 2, 2005 05:37 PM writes...
The Force is strong with this one... ;-)
Permalink to Comment6. The REAL Th0razine on November 2, 2005 07:10 PM writes...
In response to Mr. John Th0razine.
"People in some form or another have always had the ability to control information. Newspapers, Radios, Televisions; even people standing in a park and shouting on a box."
Denying people their basic rights of freedom of speech is something this government and the corporations that run this country are very good at. However I believe that the internet is too wild to tame. Are they going to start throwing people in jail for browsing content THEY deem is inappropriate.
"In actuality, its a very small portion of the population that would be upset by such impositions; Mostly college students and herb smokers who play capture the flag games online. We need to trust in God and our blessed leaders to protect us from ourselves. Peace be with you all."
Although the sarcasm is laid on pretty thick here, I think the important thing to remember is that some people are inept at recognizing it.
Permalink to CommentI'll tell you what.
You can keep your God and your peace and I'll keep my rights. Seems like a fair trade to me.
Just what we need. Another do-gooder who has ALL the answers to life and the universe telling me how I should live MY life so that THEY approve.
I need to go take a nap now because im exhausted from all the sleep I've been losing lately over whether or not THEY agree with my lifestyle.