Do We Still Need Telcos (and ISPs)?

eraserewind asks: "Are telecom providers and ISPs going to continue to be necessary in the future? Why are we all paying subscriptions for communicating? What I want is a global extremely-high-speed ad-hoc wireless data & voice network, where the only entry cost is a mobile phone (or newtork card or whatever). Devices communicate peer to peer, or routed via other people's idle devices. Remember there is no subscriptions, so don't expect to piggy-back on someone's paid for DSL bandwidth. What are the technological barriers? What kind of protocols would you need? What hardware advances? How would you solve problems of geographic isolation? Are there theoretical, political or economic reasons it couldn't work?"

Comments

RIAA

[tarawa]

I think the RIAA would attack it because it could be used to transfer copyrighted material easily and freely.

it is like....

[u19925]

having a potluck everyday!!!

Re:I'd say it's inevitable

[Lord Kano]

Oh, and a big fuck you to the multitude of rabid capitalists who think thereâ(TM)s something inherently wrong with not wanting to pay for stuff. You can take your American Dream, consumer culture, built-in obsolescence, slave to the machine, bleached pop culture ideas and go fucking rot. Itâ(TM)s idiots with a attitudes like yours that make it possible for someone to sell boxes of fucking diapers to clean your floor with when a fucking mop will do. You are the modern day serf... go back to your damned cubicle and shut up.

Why do you think we don't have global wireless energy right now? Because JP Morgan knew that there was no place to put a meter.

I'm sorry that you don't like it, and I'm sorry that it has so permeated every facet of life, but money makes the world go round.

LK