Why are the cable companies increasing speed?

VoIP is suppose to be nice, and Streaming Audio is painful under dialup. But it's nice if your local Clear Channel stations suck.

Perhaps dialup is all YOU need. Many of us have other needs/wants that dialup doesn't support.

Same reason cable companies expand the channel line up - to sell more stuff, make a profit from the infrastructure..

Video on demand Video phone VOIP Streaming Audio Networking

Things that consume bandwidth without slowing down the web browsing, And keep subscribers from realizing that dialup is all they really need.

L>Just saw a new COX commercial extolling how their having COX is fast, without

busy signals

if they were really "needs" I dont think you would want to be going with a residential service...

Why? I define 'need' in my own way. My downtime has been minimal over the past 7 years or so.

Perhaps you shouldn't write SBC off permanently. A few miles north of here, they are installing fiber to the phone systems with 50mbps of user bandwidth. That should be adequate, for a while.

Using that reasoning, however, our total gross national product would be much smaller than it is because we'd buy very little. And since spending is 2/3 of the economy, we'd have to find something to make up that slack very quickly.

Me? Shoot, I'm a web hog and proud of it. I've got two teens in the house, one that listens to streaming audio all the time and another that plays online games from noon to 3 am in the summer. Back when we had DSL whenever anyone tried to do anything online it would affect the other. Now things are sweet with plenty of bandwidth to share.

I would never consider VOIP if I was on DSL here. I'm waiting for the product to be sold by Comcast and will scratch SBC from my ledger for good.

When it comes to paying the bills, some people look at the $50 per month as luxury and the cable modem is one of the first things to go if they realize that all they do is send emails and look up a few things. Since my gainful employment is supported by those cable modem users I don't want them to downgrade. No way.

Nah - VOIP, unregulated (for now).

Besides - it's an employee perk - discounted service.

that made absolutely no sense at all.

he's obviously trying to point out that you guys are starting to argue over what's a "want" and what's a "need".

To most people it would. Consumer spending is 2/3 of the United States' economy. Obviously, almost no one buys only the necessities, otherwise you wouldn't have things like consumer electronics, high-end cars, etc. flying off the shelf. Those "extras" are the high-margin products that keep American companies as profitable as they are. If people only bought the necessities, the total value of the goods and services we consume (our GNP) would be much, much smaller and the economic impact would be felt immediately.

But that's a huge part of business. Making consumers believe something is a "need" is what marketing is all about. It's converting what entered the market as a niche item, and making it mainstream. Very few products can have the mark-up to stay a niche one forever. You don't cover R&D and other associated costs that way.

Cable Internet, video on demand and other products made possible by fiber upgrades are a perfect example. No, many people strictly speaking don't need them. But if enough compelling reasons are presented to do it, people convert. And only by going mainstream can you finance billion-dollar upgrades without going belly up.

}Same reason cable companies expand the channel line up - to sell more }stuff, make a profit from the infrastructure.. } }Video on demand }Video phone }VOIP }Streaming Audio }Networking } }Things that consume bandwidth without slowing down the web browsing, }And keep subscribers from realizing that dialup is all they really }need.

O really?! Mos o U don';t even c it cuming,heehee. Most people balk at paying for high speed when they KNOW they only kneed dial-up and that's what they stick with. Phone companies MUST act or die } } } }Lonnie wrote: } }>Just saw a new COX commercial extolling how their having COX is fast, without busy signals }>... STOP }>

}>

}>I think it;s pretty obvious to the people of RI. They OWN RI! }>

}>

}>Why r they doing this? }>

}>

}>Because the phone companies are coming,heehee, with the way overdue fiber optics because }>if they don't their going down with cell phones, cable company bundling of telephone,data }>feeds and such. }>

}> What do we need the phone companies for anymore then? }>

}>

}>put in the longer poles so u can lay more lines on top and lay the fiber. phone companies }>have been saying this for years BUT now they have to act. }>

}>It's only a matter of time b4 the phone companies do something and I think it's coming. }>

}>your opinions are appreciated.

Never took Economics? Never took typing class, either?

-- Strontium

"It's no surprise, to me. I am my own worst enemy. `Cause every now, and then, I kick the livin' shit `outta me." - Lit