A discussion in class got me thinking once again about Comcast's proposal to acquire Time-Warner for $45 billion. This proposed deal is a perfect example of a company getting too big, and putting themselves in a position to regulate what services users have access to, as well as how they would have access to said services.
There is plenty of concern on the internet about this deal, as seen by the numerous online petitions encouraging people to come together in order to stop the deal; given the amount of links that can be seen with quick Google search of "comcast sucks", I would have thought the deal would have been shut down already. It is entirely possible that the government will stop the deal from happening, despite Comcast's confidence that the deal will succeed; the Federal Trade Commission did shut down the proposal by AT&T to acquire T-Mobile in December of 2011. In doing so, one could argue that the government does recognize the danger to consumers of the potential market dominance Comcast would have if the merger was allowed to succeed; there is already pressure from within the Senate for this deal to be stopped. Comcast has already caused some outrage online by limiting bandwidth to Netflix for their streaming service, ending in a deal with Netflix paying an undisclosed sum of money in order to connect to Comcast's network.
This got me thinking about consumers' choices, or lack thereof, of broadband internet service providers (ISPs) in the US. There are the big 3: Comcast, Time-Warner, and Cox. Additionally nestled in various parts of the country are smaller ISPs, WOW! being the main one I see advertised in Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. This lack of competition does not give much room for better prices on bandwidth, as compared to other developed countries, how have relatively faster speeds at lower prices.
Right now, consumers in the US enjoy the freedom of the internet without too many stipulations, even though it is more expensive here than elsewhere. However, if this merger is allowed to happen, I worry about what that could mean for my choices as a consumer. Maybe there is nothing to worry about; maybe Comcast will be able to provide better service, overall, without raising prices or imposing new pay-walls for services; but I do not see that happening. They have no reason to operate better at lower prices if there is no pressure from consumers, and no competition. I am personally looking for other service providers in my area, and I encourage everyone who enjoys being able to access any internet service from any device, without restrictions, to do the same. Forums are nice, but nothing speaks louder than voting with your dollar.
No comments:
Post a Comment