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To: Frank A. Coluccio who wrote (4925)	1/30/1999 10:18:00 PM
From: Jay Lowe	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 29970

>> giving it away for free, eventually? Depends on what you mean by eventually, eh? In 9595, We probably won't be paying for information access in the same sense we are now. In the short-term, I will prefer to pay, since I don't much like the commercials. We see an ongoing trend toward pay-for-content and away from pay-for-access. Pay-per-view cable, subscription websites, free ISP accounts. As access becomes pervasive, it's value drops and something else rises. I think of bundling deals ... ATHM goes in with AMZN, Broadcast, MarketWatch, CNN ... I dunno who ... the resulting deal is that you get a bundle of services (web content, phone service, etc) for a fixed fee ... the focus is on the services, not the access mechanism ... like the current cable business model, only New Media-ized. This is somewhat contrary to the current web trend to give away service for advertising dollars ... where is the balance, they wondered?

To: Frank A. Coluccio who wrote (4925)	1/30/1999 11:21:00 PM
From: ftth	Respond to of 29970

To: Frank A. Coluccio who wrote (4925)	1/30/1999 11:23:00 PM
From: ftth	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 29970

I'd agree with most of that snipit. NTSC composite video is a last mile bandwidth bottleneck holding back 'mass-market TV-centric' appeal of broadband services. A digital monitor relieves this. Unlike other last mile bottlenecks, it completely relieves it, now and into the future. The resoution of the eye is fixed. You can't demand any more from them. Especially with a 15 foot viewing model. I don't think the digital-TV-centric platform/services become mainstream overnight simply because of the cost (both initial outlay and monthly). All these new whizzy services and broadband devices cost money. Big money when you add them all up. Joe consumer's bank account isn't growing in proportion to the new services and delivery devices' cost. It isn't growing fast enough to support the expectations of his loose-canon buying as reflected in the stock prices either. If Joe chooses plastic over paper (not in the grocery store sense :o)), maybe the best way to play the broadband revolution is to buy Citibank! I know I'm able to pay my cable bill with a credit card right now. As for giving it away free.....yeah, right. Sucker 'free' maybe (free if you buy....save money by spending money). dh

To: Frank A. Coluccio who wrote (4925)	1/30/1999 11:28:00 PM
From: JDM	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 29970

As long as the government stays out of it, I do not think it will ever be free. Competition may reduce rates, but not to 0. IMHO it is somewhat relative to other types of transport industries. The hotel, rental car or airline industry. There are lots of attracting characteristics (content) between competitors and certainly through competition rates have decreased, but the provider still charges for a room and a seat.

To: Frank A. Coluccio who wrote (4925)	1/31/1999 12:57:00 AM
From: ahhaha	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 29970

It is inevitable that the cost of cable service will decline asymptotically as a function of time until a low base rent rate is reached. The commercials will only pay for content and salaries. What the net will be then transcends Euripides' imagination. It will literally scrap the 19th and 20th centuries.