I'm sure the original backbone that was paid for by the taxpayers back when the telco companies were public was fiber. From there they might have paid for the switching equipment, etc, etc. The copper network I'd assume is the last mile connection.
Problem is, the original fiber is still being used, as well as the original copper, but I'm sure the switching equipment has ALL been updated. Which is a costly investment.
We're moving on the 40G now, whereas a couple years ago everything was a lot slower.
Photon, I never said the cash grab is a problem. I absolutely agree with maximizing profits. But, that is not the story being painted by Shaw, evidenced by a certain Shaw employee posting in this thread. Instead they talk about congestion, and how much it costs to provide unlimited bandwidth, and some juicy number that fluctuates anywhere from 10%-25% of the customers using 90% of the bandwidth. We're never given any real numbers outside of what Netflix and some others have told us. Which indicates to me that there is no problem with congestion, provided Shaw is staying up to date with the latest technology, and that lowering the caps has nothing to do with keeping some teenage punk from using all the bandwidth. Instead its all about maximizing profits, and keeping 'internet tv' out of the picture because in the end Netflix, Hulu and others are competing with Shaw, and they don't want that because it affects the bottom line.
Which is fine and all, but it doesn't look good for Shaw. I'd laugh if Telus didn't impose caps, and gained thousands of new customers.
IMO, this isn't that serious of a problem. Sure we all might not like it, but I think it will spurn more competition, and get more companies involved. If the Primus guy was right, and renting the fiber isn't that costly, but the true cost is in having your own building to do the switching, I can see companies starting to do that.
Especially if we consider that the internet is an untapped resource. We're talking about billions upon billions of dollars here. Paying out $150,000 for a switching center shouldn't be that big of a deal for an ISP.
Also, a few short years ago we were stuck with Rogers, Telus and Bell when it came to cell phones. Now we've suddenly got a whole slew of new providers that have added competition, and forced the big 3 to rethink their approach, and offer better deals. The retentions thread proves that. And Wind Mobile built out their own network.
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