The Telco's "Milking Cow"

We must consider the matter on the right point of view.

There are two lines, one is the Internet line and the other the telephone.
It doesn't matter if they belong to the same provider.
The data line is offered as DSL to transport data packages and follows certain rules.
The telephone line is offered to transport voice and follows other rules.
The voice line has been since long the "milking cow" of the various telco monopolies, they own the lines, the infrastructure (I am talking about Italy, but I guess more or less it applies to other countries) and they put the rules.
That is, you pay this and that.
Lately there is a small competition, but it is limited since the companies which lease the lines first do not own them, second they are few and do not want a war that would mean a huge lowering on prices (and revenues, no milking cow anymore)

The big mistake of the monopolies was to under evaluate the power VoIP will have as competitor to the voice line.
Because it is some years that we know about VoIP ( and the big monopolies are using it since long) but not so long that the hardware have become cheap and the quality of voice is astonishing (especially with H323).
The big mistake brought them to offer the data line at a cheap, flat rate.

That is the user leases the infrastructures at a good price and can use them also for "Voice".

No legislation could ever forbid something which is legal.
If I am allowed to send packages of sounds, for example Mp3, I can with every right to send my own sounds...whose copyrights belong to me.

This stated, it is clear that companies offering VoIP calls can have very good pricing.
Because most of the travel is already paid by the user (the Internet line) and on the service provider there are only the charges of the "last mile")
That could also be done by the Telco's, but then, where would finish the "milking" of the cow?

The future looks extremely bright.
But what nobody sees is that we are slowly passing from one monopoly to the other.
It is true, it is wonderful Skype Ip to Ip is free, but if you want to call an IP number on Skype's network, YOU MUST BELONG to the Network.
If you belong to the Vonage family you can call somebody on the Skype family, but you HAVE TO USE A TERMINATION, that is, you must at the end pay what they now call the "Roaming".
Yes, it is cheaper, it has another name, but it is still the same business model as before.

Do we really want this?
Do we really want many proprietary Networks or wouldn't we prefer a real FREE market, where everybody can call everybody, because everybody is using a STANDARD CODEC which not only is understood by his gatekeeper, but also by another gatekeeper using the standard codecs.
People should be aware when they buy a Hardware that they will be able to use it JUST with that provider and will be chained for life (or at least for the life of the hardware) to that.

This is a most important issue that nobody wants to discuss.
Because it is not convenient.
When you want to change a system YOU MUST PROPOSE something different.
Not only a CHEAPER copy of the existing one.

Patrizia

From a Real World on IP

http://www.worldonip.com