[1st-mile-nm] NN Query

[John Osmon]

On Sun, Dec 17, 2017 at 10:09:18AM -0700, Richard Lowenberg wrote:
> Given the amount of 'noise' as well as informative info., for those
> who can parse it, I'm personally pleased that we've not had a major
> Network Neutrality back-and-forth on this list.

Right now, the regulatory framework pushes last-mile providers into a
situation where they maximize their profits when they deny ISP
competition.  Network Neutrality (as it is currently thought of) does
nothing to help this situation.

If we really want to see ISP competition, we need to set the base
regulations so that they make such competition ideal for last-mile
providers.

Perhaps we should be pursuing regulation that prohibits last-mile
provider from being ISPs.  We could preclude companies that use the
public rights of way from being ISPs -- they could only connect
end-consumers to ISPs.

In such an environment, the people using public resources would maximize
their profit when they offered paths to multiple ISPs, and the ISPs
could follow whatever fast/slow lanes they wanted -- but consumers would
have a choice in a marketplace that stood a chance of having actual
competition.

I see this as one simple law that pushes industry in the direction we
want.  The alternative is nothing, or a tapestry of laws that puts the
burden on consumers to keep providers in check.