http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/3109146.stm
In North America, we are quite used to paying flat rate for broadband access, and think this totally justified when we consider the pernicious results of per-minute access fees, especially as these apply in Continental Europe. This article argues that flat rate fees cannot be justified in an age of file sharing, because network congestion is the result.
Without disputing anything this article says, I suspect that the negatives of per-minute sharing in terms of the "InterNet commons" far outweigh any benefits that this might create. An alternative, if one was necessary, would be a tiered band of flat rate access, with anything above this band invoking a surcharge. This would mean that the high bandwidth users would pay extra, while the vast majority of people who use the Net for fun and profit would still continue on a flat rate.
One wonders what consumer resistance would result if flat rate was to be abandoned in North America.
Posted by jho at September 22, 2003 11:47 AM