Re: [arch-d] A Public Option for the Core

[Andrew Campling <[e-mail]>]

On Aug 17, 2020, at 16:64, Joseph Touch <[e-mail]> wrote:

> On Aug 17, 2020, at 6:55 AM, Andrew Campling <[e-mail]<mailto:[e-mail]>> wrote:
>>
>> ...  My personal preference is for networks to be transparent in the way that they manage traffic (if at all) so that
>> I can choose my network based on what they do.
>
> Hmm. How many *choices* do you have?
>
> The last time I looked, over 1/3 of the US had only one ISP, i.e., no choice. I’m in the metro area of
> the second largest US city and have 2 “choices” for high-capacity connectivity (i.e., not cellular), one
> of which is nearly bankrupt.
>
> And let’s say I get both of those - it’s not like I can run apps connected to different WIFI access
> points at the same time from a single host.

Because the UK mandates competition between ISPs at the retail level with wholesale network access, there is quite good choice from a range of different ISPs including both mass market and more niche providers.  I do note though that the situation in the US is very different.

This does of course helpfully underline the importance of not designing schemes based on the assumption that all markets are the same as the one with which we are most familiar.


Andrew