Thank goodness at&t revised its recently revised terms of service so that I can once again feel free to write critically about the company (and all of its associates which is what, over 50% of the businesses in the world?). Just in time, too since at&t just won a sweet decision from the FCC that says it is free to charge whatever it wants for broadband service. Here’s a juicy quote from the article:
AT&T had sought relief from government imposed rules because it said that sufficient competition existed in the high-speed Internet, or broadband, market and therefore such price caps weren’t needed anymore.
And then there’s this: “…the agency’s two Democrats disagreed with the decision, saying the evidence to grant relief was “altogether underwhelming.” They added granting relief could lessen competition in certain areas.” Really? Certain areas like Humboldt County, perhaps? As the sole provider of the sole fiber optic line, at&t currently has a choke hold on the region. Suddenlink already claims it pays more for it’s backhaul here than any other region they serve. Cox had the same complaint.
If multiple fiber outages weren’t enough to convince us that we need another connection to the Internet backbone, then perhaps the idea of increased competition with the behemoth telecommunications company may be just the extra kick we need.
AT&T now plans to charge more for dial-up than for DSL. Who still uses dial-up? People who have no option.