more on more on U.S. broadband A-OK MUST READ

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

------ Forwarded Message
From: Carl Malamud <carl () media org>
Organization: Memory Palace Press
Date: Tue, 11 Jan 2005 12:00:49 -0800 (PST)
To: <dave () farber net>
Cc: Ip <ip () v2 listbox com>
Subject: Re: [IP] more on more on U.S. broadband A-OK MUST READ

Hi -

I agree with David Young's analysis 100% looking backwards.  There is
no doubt that unmetered local calls made a huge difference.  And, I
agree that people are price sensitive.

The average cable bill, for example, is $40 according to the FCC.
As David points out, dial-up Internet bills hover around that mark
as well.  And, the average cell phone bill is $49.91 according to
the U.S. Census.

But the distribution is becoming increasingly bimodal.  Many people
pay $20/month for their Internet access, and that balances the
$80/month broadband people, a not inconsiderable population these
days at 12 million people in the U.S. in Q3/2004.

What's going to be interesting looking forward is what happens when
Comcast decides to go for market share big-time and start offering
$40 or $20 unlimited access.

$40/month for unlimited dial-up was a great deal in the 1990's,
and continues to be a nice service.  But, as China, Japan, Korea, and
many others are showing us, it may not be the business model going
forward.

Regards,

Carl


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