If only they would follow...

PBS | I, Cringely - If we build it they will come:
"What we'd get for our $17.42 per month is a gigabit-capable circuit with no bits inside - just a really fast connection to some local point of presence where you could connect to ANY ISP wanting to operate in your city."

I'm a pretty avid reader of Robert Cringley's weekly tech columns. This week he talks about the need for communities to join together and form cooperatives to provide the infrastructure for high-speed internet, sans the big-telco operators. If only the rest of the country would look at Utah. Although it is still early in the game, I suspect that we will look back at Utah as the model for how citizens should get internet connectivity. I just moved out to Leesburg, Virginia where Verizon is the 800 lbs. gorilla. They do offer fiber internet (FiOS) out here and it's alright (yes, of course I subscribe), but there are so many future limitations. For one thing, FiOS service is still a shared medium - it's bundled at a box somewhere in my neighborhood. Verizon is also one of the biggest opponents of Net Neutrality. I'm just waiting for the day when skype, bittorrent, etc are blocked or at least 'shaped'. iProvo is already talking about offering 100mbps connections, where Verizon is proud to offer 5mbps! If only others would look to Utah.

Don't Sell!

Don't pull the plug on Connexion, Boeing. By Daniel Gross: "Sure, Connexion costs money it costs money for the airlines to install it, and it costs money for travelers to use it. But for all parties, it would be money well-spent. Think of the competitive advantage JetBlue has reaped by putting seat-back televisions on its planes. Airlines that cater mostly to business customers could certainly do the same by making their planes Internet-ready. When a company sends a person away on business, it is already shelling out thousands of dollars full freight for business class, car services, hotels, and meals. An extra $25 for Internet service is a drop in the bucket. "

The author is right. Boeing should hold onto Connexion! Many companies would be willing to sell out $25 or so to either get more productivity out of their workers or to allow them to take care of personal matters as they travel. Additionally, by offering the service domestically they would be attacting customers on shorter trips than the 8-9hr international flights. You can sell to 3 times as many domestically just because the flights are shorter. There is money to be made!