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Snail Mail Still Winning The Bandwidth War

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the first-mover-advantage dept.

LR_none writes "Today's New York Times has this short piece suggesting snail mail is the leading broadband technology, at least for video movies on demand. The article states that the 8 to 9 gigs of data on a DVD would take two weeks to download at 56kb, making Netflix' three-day distribution by mail seem speedy. (Since they can send three or more movies at once, Netflix compares favorably with DSL download speeds, too.) The author estimates Netflix alone distributes 1,500 terabytes a day, which is impressive considering the Internet carries 2,000TB a day (by estimates cited in the article). The 'immediate gratification' aspect of Internet consumerism has given a huge boost to companies like FedEx and UPS, but it's surprising to think of the post office as being the leading infrastructure provider for digital entertainment, in terms of market share and efficiency, for the forseeable future. (Disclaimer: I don't work for Netflix or the post office.)"

6 of 257 comments (clear)

  1. 8-9 gig in 2-3 weeks over 56K? by NineNine · · Score: 0, Redundant

    I wish is was that fast. 1 gig takes 2-3 weeks over a dialup connection. Not that I'd ever know, since I'd *never* download anything that big, [cough]Episode1and2overKazaainAVI[cough]

  2. an old expression by EnderWiggnz · · Score: 2, Redundant

    never underestimate the baud rate of a station wagon filled with backup tapes...

    --
    ... hi bingo ...
  3. As they always say: by Your_Mom · · Score: 0, Redundant

    Never underestimate the bandwith of a stationwagon full of backup tapes. (Or a 747 full of CD-ROMs)

    --
    Objects in the blog are closer then they ap
  4. What is the saying... by TFloore · · Score: 1, Redundant

    "Never underestimate the bandwidth of a station wagon full of backup tapes."

    Something like that. Think it was the sig line from someone's rec.humor posting in the early 90s.

    --
    This is my sig. There are many like it but this one is... Oops. Frank, I've got your sig again! Where's mine?
  5. Efficiency by anthony_dipierro · · Score: 1, Redundant

    Andrew Odlyzko, the director of the Digital Technology Center at the University of Minnesota, says that the cost to the service provider of transmitting a data file the size of a typical DVD movie over the Internet could be nearly $20.

    Sure, if you unicast it. Alternatively, you can use a satellite and distribute it to millions of people all at the same time...

    The leading broadband technology? Television.

  6. Stupid by SurfsUp · · Score: 1, Redundant

    Nobody downloads video on a 56K dialup. The 8-9 Gig will take roughly 24 hours. It will be done long before the snail mail gets there. Get a clue.

    However, send a truckload of video disks and somebody has a point. A boring, irrelevant point.

    --
    Life's a bitch but somebody's gotta do it.