Does the Current Broadband Infostructure Have it’s Limits?
According to a recent study by Nemertes Research, expanded video and interactivity will cause a bottleneck and slower connectivity for high-speed users as early as 2010. In what is considered the first study of projected online traffic growth, Nemertes President Johna Till Johnson suggests that the current copper and fiber lines will be overwhelmed to a point that connectivity will remind users of the “bad old days of dial up”. The article goes on to suggest that cable and phone companies may need to invest an additional $55 billion just to prevent the slowdown.
Why would the US, who already neglects many rural communities, and ranks behind such technical powerhouses as Denmark, Iceland and Korea in number of broadband users per 100 population, continue to invest in expensive and limited Internet infrastructure? The high cost of cable, the expense of trenching and burying, as well as the cost for repairs is the main reason we already pay too much for high-speed access… well that and the fact that there is typically little to no competition in each market.
Why make the same mistake twice? We already know that cable and phone providers can’t justify hardwired broadband to rural residents and businesses. Instead of the service getting cheaper as the initial cost of the network deployment is retired, consumers can expect higher costs, less competition and another long, frustrating rollout of high-speed Internet connectivity.
And, do we really believe that the publicly traded, hardwired providers, are going to lower their cost as performance slows? Do we believe they are ready to invest the money necessary to upgrade their technology before a bottleneck occurs?
I don’t. We talk to cities all the time that are still being forced to use old copper communication lines, that have long been outdated, because their local provider can’t build a positive business case. Now, with the need to start over, these towns will be even lower in the pecking order.
Do your community a favor. Jump right over “hardwired - part 2″ and move into the age of WiFi. It’s lower cost of deployment, broader coverage and the endless applications that come with mobility offers much more than expensive cable and restrictive wires. Businesses and residents will be especially interested in your community when the Internet slows to a crawl…
which appears to be sooner than we thought.
Original USA Today Article http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/technology/2007-11-18-slow-internet_N.htm?csp=34&loc=interstitialskip