The biggest lie in the debate about broadband is that it’s expensive, and that its price is rising.
NO, writes Bob Frankston:
THIS STUFF IS CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP. IT’s FREE! Better, it
reduces the costs so don’t pander to those who assume that pain is
virtue.
- We’ve already paid for so much and its running.
- Savings over the current very complex billing system (such as building
redundant infrastructures) would save a lot.- Using a common infrastructure would save a lot
- Simply sending X-Rays as bits would save an incredible amount of time
and money.- People should be able to buy their own local connectivity to their
neighbors.- Wireless is becoming an amenity.
Forget the bonds, just pay for it at of pocket change.
Google alone would gain a lot by having connectivity available. Just about any
single application such as reducing health costs would pay for much of
it.
This is not like the multizillion dollar projects. This
is cheap – it saves money.
So we shouldn’t be held hostage to cheapskates. Instead
focus on where there is awareness and build from there. Forget the third world
burgs that would rather punish P2Pers. If they want to opt out, then go toBangalore
Evolution works. Those who don’t get it are simply
sloughed off. You may have to move to a more connected and aware community but
that’s the same as choosing a place to live by the schools that are
available.
We don’t have to win every battle, just make some
opportunity available and work from there.
Frankston drew this response from Michael Bookey of Pachena Light Consulting:
Hear! Hear! Bob, you are absolutely right that this stuff is cheap! We have been trained to think of bandwidth as expensive. Its not, there is an infinite amount of it to be mined by Moore’s law. Its not a finite resource as telephone and cable television want people to believe. It is also a fixed cost system, the more you use it the cheaper the per bit cost becomes, which drives more usage, which drives the cost per bit toward zero.
