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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Steve,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>I read your magazine and appreciate your efforts in promoting broadband and recognize that video content providers are a huge problem, but I hope that you do not mean to suggest that two suppliers equals effective competition.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>There are countless studies that document the fact that oligopolists act just like monopolists – even absent overt collusion. It is just the nature of the beast.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>The problem in the US is that we have virtually unregulated monopoly/duopoly for-profit companies running a public utility service (cable and fiber plant), another oligopoly running the content creation (networks origin) as well as over-the-air waves, and a third duopoly running cellular. Is it any wonder they do not compete on price?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Do you really believe that cost of the subsidized phones is the reason for the high US cellular rates? The numbers suggest otherwise.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>The fact is that unfettered market competition does not work for the consumer (in the long term) in the absence of a large number of potential providers.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Gary<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> 1st-mile-nm-bounces@mailman.dcn.org [mailto:1st-mile-nm-bounces@mailman.dcn.org] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Steve Ross<br><b>Sent:</b> Monday, February 11, 2013 10:20 PM<br><b>To:</b> Tom Johnson<br><b>Cc:</b> Friam@redfish. com; 1st-Mile-NM<br><b>Subject:</b> Re: [1st-mile-nm] Susan Crawford on Why U.S. Internet Access is Slow, Costly, and Unfair on Vimeo<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal>I'm a reluctant fan of Crawford and Moyers, but her book and this interview miss the mark. There are major inaccuracies in the interview itself. For instance, Crawford says Manhattan suffers from a Time Warner Cable monopoly, although Verizon is bringing FiOS to every household in NYC. I have a small apartment in Manhattan and I have a choice! So does Crawford, I suspect.<o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal>But the biggest problem is with the content providers, not the broadband providers. Thanks to predatory practices among the content providers there is almost no profit in video -- but they have to provide it. SOMEONE has to pay for building the network, and that someone is the consumer of pure Internet broadband. The providers need to get $20-30 profit per month per subscriber to pay for the network, and they only get $5-10 from video, zero from voice.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal>BTW, data we're publishing this month shows that fiber customers pay the highest monthly fee for pure broadband access but they pay the least per Mbps.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal>My magazine (<a href="http://www.bbcmag.com">www.bbcmag.com</a>) calls for anyone to be able to build networks and we have editorialized for public broadband. But between higher content costs and less population density, and oddities in pricing (Europeans pay low phone bills but pay $500+ for the phone!) most of what Crawford is complaining about is not caused by the companies she faults. In this interview, she comes across as either an idiot or a liar. She's better than that.<o:p></o:p></p></div></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal>On Mon, Feb 11, 2013 at 10:39 PM, Tom Johnson <<a href="mailto:tom@jtjohnson.com" target="_blank">tom@jtjohnson.com</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><a href="http://vimeo.com/59236702" target="_blank">http://vimeo.com/59236702</a><br><br>Susan Crawford on Why U.S. Internet Access is Slow, Costly, and Unfair<span style='color:#888888'><br><br><span class=hoenzb>-tj</span><br></span><br>_______________________________________________<br>1st-mile-nm mailing list<br><a href="mailto:1st-mile-nm@mailman.dcn.org">1st-mile-nm@mailman.dcn.org</a><br><a href="http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm" target="_blank">http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm</a><o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><br><br clear=all><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal>-- <br>Steve Ross<o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal>Corporate Editor, Broadband Communities Magazine (<a href="http://www.bbcmag.com" target="_blank">www.bbcmag.com</a>)<br>201-456-5933 mobile, 781-284-8810 landline<br>707-WOW-SSR3 (707-969-7773) Google Voice<br>editorsteve (Facebook, LinkedIn)<br>editorsteve1 (Twitter)<br><a href="mailto:editorsteve@gmail.com" target="_blank">editorsteve@gmail.com</a><o:p></o:p></p></div></div><div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><hr size=1 width="100%" noshade style='color:#A0A0A0' align=center></div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>No virus found in this message.<br>Checked by AVG - <a href="http://www.avg.com">www.avg.com</a><br>Version: 2013.0.2897 / Virus Database: 2639/6098 - Release Date: 02/11/13<o:p></o:p></p></div></body></html>