As Congress and the FCC consider calls from activist groups demanding restrictions on how network companies manage their networks, they should begin with the understanding that Internet bandwidth, like everything else, is a scarce commodity and must be managed to give businesses and consumers the kind of speedy and robust Internet that we have all come to depend on—both now and in the future.
While these groups demand restrictions which would slow down the Internet and render it a "dumb pipe," we see it differently...
- “A necessary part of the efficient and effective function of any network is management of that network, whether it is a network for electricity, water, automobile traffic, or traditional telephone service. In fact, recent articles have highlighted the renewed push in the electricity industry to add “smarts” to the current systems in an attempt to provide the same quality of service but to help reduce demand during the peak hours, in fact bragging of new abilities allowing for “second-by-second tinkering.’”
“Because, like everything else, Internet bandwidth is a finite commodity, it is subject to Say’s Law, which says that “supply creates its own demand.” Thus, an abundant supply of bandwidth will create abundant demand, and thus there will NEVER be “enough” bandwidth. However much bandwidth we are able to bring on-line, there will always be a need to manage it efficiently. In other words, as expanded resources are made available so too will people find clever and useful ways to use those expanded resources.”
- IPI’s Comments to the FCC In the Matter of Broadband Industry Practices,
to read complete comments click here
- “Beyond their right to manage their networks, broadband companies have an obligation to manage their networks. In almost all cases, network management today is unnoticed by consumers. The opposite, a total lack of management, would not be true. If network operators were precluded from managing their networks, consumers would clearly be negatively affected. Imagine a day where, as some would have it, all “management” was abandoned. The result could be a complete or partial breakdown of our communications infrastructure.
Critics suggest that, rather than network management, the solution is simply ever-greater amounts of bandwidth. But this criticism ignores a basic tenet of economics—scarcity.”
- IPI Ideas “Network Management: Should We Have a Smart or Stupid Internet?,”
read the complete analysis by clicking here
- “It seems ironic to me that many commentators, while waxing eloquent about the exciting future of Internet applications that will change our lives, seem to miss the fact that, just like Internet applications, the broadband market itself isn't mature, either. New competition will be coming available relatively soon from both wireless and broadband over power lines. The market for broadband is incomplete, and probably still in its infancy. It seems likely to me that there will be new competitors in the market in 5 years under status quo policy. The question is: Will the market for broadband providers expand better, will new competitors enter the market more quickly, with more regulation? I think not, and I think the activists understand this as well, which is why they call for unbundling.”
- IPI Policy Bytes Blog, “Noteworthy stuff from the FCC’s network management hearing in Boston”