Open Letter to FCC Chairman Powell

Adina Levin writes "An open letter to FCC chairman Michael Powell signed by internet and tech industry pioneers explains why the government shouldn't prop up the ailing telecom behemoths. Telecom companies bought expensive network technology with long bonds. That technology has been made obsolete by gear getting faster and cheaper all the time by Moore's law and Metcalfe's law. The telecom companies are asking for the equivalent of a bailout for their investments in sailing ships after the advent of steam. The way to speed the deployment of broadband to homes isn't to prop up businesses based on old technology, but to let uncompetitive businesses 'fail fast', and let new competitors play."

Comments

Re:Legitimate reason for bailout?

[tobo]

Well, the point is that it is fundamentally wrong for the government to do anything to hinder the workings of the market economy.

This is why we should seriously consider abolishing the government and leaving everything to the market forces.

People like Friedman and Hayek have proved that markets are the ultimate source of truth, at least in this world.

Though it is always funny to read how commie CEO's beg for state subsidies to help their mismanaged companies.

The market economy answer is of course: sell it if it doesn't work.

Re:Where are the Internet pioneers

[JaredOfEuropa]

Who? Al Gore of course, after all he invented the damn thing!

impeach and imprison your attitude

[Anonymous Coward]

Is it always about politics? What did W do now? I don't like his policies, and money monger oil people in general. But what did W do to be impeached and imprisoned?

Look at yourself. You envy the fact that he is in power, don't you? Impeach your envy, imprison your partisan attitude. We need to worry about being able to make phone calls. It isn't all a big conspiracy of the rich against the poor. It is about reliable local and long distance phone. If we let the phone companies all go out of business, how will you beable to post your hateful screes?

Re:impeach and imprison your attitude

[ahfoo]

Wireless my dear AC bitch, wireless. The "phone companies" would be irrelevant if wireless would take off and guess who is trying to prevent that from happening. Yeah, that's right big Dubya.
And as for what he did to be impeached and imprisoned, don't you read the news? The Enron kids are confessing that the "California Energy Crisis" was all a big hoax perpretrated not just by Enron but by a whole consortium of Energy traders based in Houston with ties to both Bush and Cheney. I don't make the news, I just read it. That's stealing and possibly murder. People lost their lives because of those outages.
And on a personal note, I can't stand to use the damn telephone. I leave mine unplugged most of the time.

Re:Privatize them!

[nmg]

Actually, with fully privatized education, competition would likely drive prices down to levels affordable to most people. Even if it didn't, there would be plenty of charities or other private organizations willing to help out. Even so, I don't really support fully private education. It seems to me there needs to be a heavily standardized educational "base." That's another post, though.