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Submitted: January 12, 2010 - 3:35pm
Originally published: January 12, 2010
Last updated: January 12, 2010 - 3:36pm
Originally published: January 12, 2010
Last updated: January 12, 2010 - 3:36pm
Source:
Hill, The
Author:
Kim Hart
Usage-based pricing models for wireless services may be a way to ease some congestion on cellphone networks, Federal Communications Commission members said.
Commissioner Robert McDowell said companies should be able to experiment with different pricing models, especially if private carriers are expected to finance the building of faster, bigger networks to expand wireless broadband services. If people pay for the bandwidth they use, it could reduce congestion on the networks as well. "Pricing freedom has to be essential," he said. A small number of users take up the majority of bandwidth. So charging some of the heavy users for that bandwidth makes sense, Commissioner McDowell said. "I think it's time to let that happen," he said. "Net neutrality proponents say it should be an all-you-can-eat price. But that will lead to gridlock."
Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker indicated companies could do other things to lighten the load on strained wireless networks. "Maybe we move back to a world where people pay for roaming," she said.
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Comments
I agree that usage based pricing is appropriate for both wired and wireless Internet I do not think this conflicts with network neutrality in that the traffic is still handled on a nondiscriminatory basis since preference is not given to a particular kind of traffic or the traffic of a specific favorite supplier. Further, not all traffic needs real time (or close to it) delivery. Interactive content (VoIP especially) needs priority delivery. Streaming audio and video could have lower priority with adequate buffer size on the receive end. Email can have a very low priority. So, usage based pricing should consider the priority the user puts on the traffic. Low priority traffic should cost much less.
It would be interesting to see what usage based pricing would actually be for various customers. As a start, how about adding up all the revenue in a month for an ISP, then add up all the GB handled to get a $/GB value. Then, what would the typical user end up paying? I suspect it would be less than is being paid now for "all you can eat". It would be interesting to see some numbers like this for a start, then look at how packet priority can be applied to lower costs and even out the load.
Harold
(sent from my Verizon unlimited data cellphone with my netbook as I ride the bus home from work...)