--OT--
What will it cost for your ADSL access? You pay for your ADSL line, the cheapest i have seen, for similar speeds to cable, is 39.95 for d/l of about 500kbs. If you want top speed, be prepared to pay $80/month. On top of that you also pay for your ISP. so add what? about $20/mth? Every major market i have seen, ADSL if far more expensive. So check your costs once again.
With cable you pay 39.95/mth.
Secondly speaking in a marco view. The infrastructure exists for cable companies to cheaply and effectively begin their cable service. For phone companies to offer ADSL in as many places as cable is, it would require massive capital investments. Also, phone companies make HUGE profits of their T1 lines. Offering widespread ADSL would destroy the billion dollar profits made from T1.
So, why would a phone company spend billions of dollars to upgrade their systems, only to destroy and existing billion dollar business?
The answer is... they will, eventually, but Cable already has a huge headstart. @HOME is partly owned by major cable companies who currently control over 50% of access to homes in North America.
While phone companies reluctantly and slowly roll out ADSL, @HOME is expanding exponentially into homes that used to connect to AOL with their 56.6 modem.
AOL knows it is in trouble, that is why it has been making rumblings to the federal gov. about @HOMES monopoly in this area. To open up cable to AOL through the FCC would require Cable companies to be regulated much the same way phone companies are... and this will not happen any time soon.
IMHO... Cost and timing make ADSL a looser. If you want a more technical view on why ADSL is not all its cracked up to be, i suggest you check out the @HOME thread.. their are some very intelligent techno wizards who discuss the tech issues.
regards.. Jay
PS. if you cant tell, i am Long on @HOME :-) |
