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Comcast looking to impose data limits
 Bismarck.Ramyrez
Server: Bismarck
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Posts: 4746
By Bismarck.Ramyrez 2014-05-16 09:02:00
As somebody who audits local Texas towns/cities and parts of the state of Texas (well, I'm on the team of several firms, and we compile our findings in one large report) I find that there are more opportunities for corruption the larger number of people involved. Theory states the other way around, but reality, more power leads to more corruption, and the only way to get real power is to have more people you "serve."
I'm not necessarily saying you're wrong in the grand scheme I guess. It's just that none of my own experience evidence a much different set of findings.
Please remember I've now lived through the past twelve years dealing with Ed Rendell and Tom Corbett (the governor, not the old school comic book space cadet. Though you wouldn't be inaccurate in describing the governor with the colloquial use of the phrase "space cadet").
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By Asura.Kingnobody 2014-05-16 09:03:08
Oh, I was just sharing my own observations. Not countering yours or anything.
Lakshmi.Flavin
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By Lakshmi.Flavin 2014-05-16 09:09:21
Look at Illinois... The last two governors are/were in prison and the current one is under investigation.
They just passed a budget with a $4billion dollar shortfall that relies on a tax increase that was supposed to be temporary but this pretty much seals the deal on it being permanant just so they can meet budget requirements.
Lack of oversight on funds... patronage was running so wild they actually got the feds to step in to start monitoring lol...
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By Asura.Kingnobody 2014-05-16 09:10:32
Look at Illinois... The last two governors are/were in prison and the current one is under investigation.
They just passed a budget with a $4billion dollar shortfall that relies on a tax increase that was supposed to be temporary but this pretty much seals the deal on it being permanant just so they can meet budget requirements.
Lack of oversight on funds... patronage was running so wild they actually got the feds to step in to start monitoring lol... As a general statement, it is true that the local levels are less corrupt than state, and state less corrupt than federal. There are exceptions, but if you base your assumptions on the exceptions alone, then it is a wonder how you live your life without jumping at every shadow....
Lakshmi.Flavin
Server: Lakshmi
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By Lakshmi.Flavin 2014-05-16 09:34:32
Those aren't exceptions... Unless you mean to just make your statement the rule (which it isn't) and anything that happens beyond that the exception? State and local government is just as corrupt if not more so than federal governemnt...
Things don't change when you privatize things either. It's private citizens with agendas that wiggle their way in to government positions soo....
Also, why do you think that a limited view of accounting material gives you a clear picture of all levels of state and federal corruption?
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By Asura.Kingnobody 2014-05-16 09:48:26
Those aren't exceptions... Unless you mean to just make your statement the rule and anything that happens beyond that the exception? State and local government is just as corrupt if not more so than federal governemnt... If you take all forms of government, classify them based on level (local, state, federal) and then quantify the level of corruption in all forms of government in the same level, and average the quantified levels and compare the levels as separate, you would find that my statement is true.
But that would require analysis beyond the scope of you.
Also, why do you think that a limited view of accounting material gives you a clear picture of all levels of state and federal corruption? Thank you very much for showing your ignorance. I said audit, not review. Auditing practices is beyond those of looking at financial statements. It involves reviewing and quantifying controls and policies, and reviewing effectiveness of said controls and policies.
Again, well beyond you.
But thank you again for showing your ignorance and trying to make a statement from that.
By volkom 2014-05-16 09:48:58
I don't have comcast, but i heard awful things about it.
imo, I wouldn't mind data limits from my isp, as long as they guarantee like a 99% up-time along with 100% of the actual bandwidth that i'm paying for.
just not sure how they would break that down. gamers use a ton of data :P
 Garuda.Chanti
Server: Garuda
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Posts: 11816
By Garuda.Chanti 2014-05-16 09:50:49
Ragnarok.Sekundes said: »....
It's very expensive to supply internet to an entire country, so very few people are willing to risk it. And even if they do, without some heavy regulation, the larger providers can use their size and positions to put the others out of business easily.
A corporation who has a monopoly has 0 reason to improve anything or even keep it up to any standards. At least with a government we start out with a decent service level and have some say and our votes can sometimes make a difference.... No, it isn't expensive at all. If there is electricity, there can be fiber. Period.
I live in Grant County WA, a rural county. I literally have fiber to my wall. This is because I also get my power from a public utility district. They are saving enough by reading meters remotely to pay for the fiber. Neighboring Douglass County's PUD is doing the same.
So why haven't "investor owned" power companies followed suit? Simple, they are lobbying the government for subsidies. Or, they are demanding the taxpayers of the whole country pay them to do something that would save them money and increase their revenue stream.
As to voting making a difference? Well, money being speech, if you can afford enough speech you can make a difference. Votes hardly ever do. But I hold the ingrained view that if you don't vote you can't ***. And I do love bitching. So I vote.
Lakshmi.Flavin
Server: Lakshmi
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By Lakshmi.Flavin 2014-05-16 10:02:34
Those aren't exceptions... Unless you mean to just make your statement the rule and anything that happens beyond that the exception? State and local government is just as corrupt if not more so than federal governemnt... If you take all forms of government, classify them based on level (local, state, federal) and then quantify the level of corruption in all forms of government in the same level, and average the quantified levels and compare the levels as separate, you would find that my statement is true.
But that would require analysis beyond the scope of you.
Also, why do you think that a limited view of accounting material gives you a clear picture of all levels of state and federal corruption? Thank you very much for showing your ignorance. I said audit, not review. Auditing practices is beyond those of looking at financial statements. It involves reviewing and quantifying controls and policies, and reviewing effectiveness of said controls and policies.
Again, well beyond you.
But thank you again for showing your ignorance and trying to make a statement from that. When have you ananlyzed or given any data to show the average level of corruption on any level of government? Again... You're just like Jet in that you say something using extremely limited personal interpretation of an extremely limited sample size then expect everyone to eat it up from the trough like it is law... lol...
Quote: As somebody who audits local Texas towns/cities and parts of the state of Texas (well, I'm on the team of several firms, and we compile our findings in one large report)
On a team that does audits some parts of TX government... This makes you an expert on all forms of government corruption on every level how?
Basically you have zero idea of what you are talking about and follow up with more garbage and insults because you have nothing better to say.
Server: Asura
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By Asura.Kingnobody 2014-05-16 10:10:46
Nice troll Flavin. Too bad I'm not falling for it like Jet.
So, you are basically saying that somebody who has no experience in a field is more of an expert than somebody who works in that field daily.
Why don't you stop for a minute and read what you are typing before you hit submit. Unless your intention is to troll, you are sounding very stupid at the moment.
Lakshmi.Flavin
Server: Lakshmi
Game: FFXI
Posts: 18466
By Lakshmi.Flavin 2014-05-16 10:33:27
You don't work in the field... you make sweeping generalizations about something you have a vastly limited view on... a child reading a newspaper is better qualified to comment than you.
You do this often too... It's pretty much the equivalent of name dropping then expect people to sit at attention and actually take your word for something other than what it is... an opinion.
I filed this guys tax returns guys, I can't tell you who's it was or what was involved but it makes me an expert on the subject!
Don't fall for it like Jet because you are Jet... "I know what I'm talking about guys cuz just trust me!"
Server: Asura
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By Asura.Kingnobody 2014-05-16 10:44:29
You don't work in the field And your basis for your argument is what again? Because you said so?
Sorry, not good enough.
and you accuse me of making blanket statements... you make sweeping generalizations about something you have a vastly limited view on I believe I explained a small part, but good overview of what I do in these audits. If I tried to explain, step by step, what I do, not only would it go over your head, you would probably accuse me of giving you technical overload, and further attempt to say that I don't work in the field I just described for you.
Which is to say, you trolling people again.
I filed this guys tax returns guys, I can't tell you who's it was or what was involved but it makes me an expert on the subject! Ah, to be so stupid as to think that tax = audit. Or that you can only do one or the other. I pity you, honestly I do.
Again, nice attempt of trolling. I give it 5.6/10
Lakshmi.Flavin
Server: Lakshmi
Game: FFXI
Posts: 18466
By Lakshmi.Flavin 2014-05-16 11:05:55
My basis would be that you've said you don't work for the government.
By vastly limited view, I mean that you, by your own admission, only work on audits for some parts of TX government. Supposedly being on a team that performs audits for only some parts of the TX government somehow makes you think you now possess the knowledge of corruption based on every level of government to determine what the rules are and what the exceptions are. It doesn't.
I know what an audit is... This comment was to show your actions on a general level... that's why I prefaced it by saying that you go on like a person that name drops. That was an example of a previous attmpt you've put out there. Trust me guys I did this one thing so I'm an expert now...
It get's tiring having to explain everything to you since you're obviously unable to understand simple conversation.
Server: Asura
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By Asura.Kingnobody 2014-05-16 11:19:26
My basis would be that you've said you don't work for the government. It would be hard to have an outside audit if I worked directly for the government.
You know, legal issues. Or you would if you put two and two together.
By vastly limited view, I mean that you, by your own admission, only work on audits for some parts of TX government. Supposedly being on a team that performs audits for only some parts of the TX government somehow makes you think you now possess the knowledge of corruption based on every level of government to determine what the rules are and what the exceptions are. It doesn't. It means that not only do I see the data that is given to me, I also see first hand how the data was produced and quantified. Just because I work on part of the audit doesn't mean that I don't read the report before it is issued.
You also forgot (or neglected) to mention that I also admitted to work on local governmental internal audits, which is a small portion of what Texas goes through. I have the data available to me to make a statement that quantifies my opinion.
But that requires you to put two and two together. You still haven't shown that (or refuse to in your attempt to troll).
I highly doubt it. Give us all a Cliff's Notes version.
This comment was to show your actions on a general level... that's why I prefaced it by saying that you go on like a person that name drops. That was an example of a previous attmpt you've put out there. Trust me guys I did this one thing so I'm an expert now... I give you general information because I strongly doubt you can comprehend anything harder than general information. In fact, you show that you have a hard time even comprehending general information in the first place.
Maybe I'm expecting too much from you.
It get's tiring having to explain everything to you since you're obviously unable to understand simple conversation. Is that your personal observations of yourself? Because you cannot grasp simple concepts, either by willful ignorance or attempt to illicit a reaction from me. I'm guessing it's the second, or really, I'm hoping it's not the first.
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By Terrah Crystal 2014-05-16 11:24:31
its kinda funny and sad. I see this story and see 'oh great they're going to screw things up now', and theres speculation (at least in my area) that Charter is taking over some of the Comcast markets and making a 3rd party company for those areas.
Granted I already have Charter (its the only option other than lolATT), I'll likely be keeping it anyways (Charter) even should other people in my area switch from Comcast to Charter/3rd Party
Lakshmi.Flavin
Server: Lakshmi
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Posts: 18466
By Lakshmi.Flavin 2014-05-16 11:42:28
There is something very wrong with you lol...
[+]
Ragnarok.Sekundes
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Posts: 4212
By Ragnarok.Sekundes 2014-05-16 12:34:55
No, it isn't expensive at all. If there is electricity, there can be fiber. Period.
I live in Grant County WA, a rural county. I literally have fiber to my wall. This is because I also get my power from a public utility district. They are saving enough by reading meters remotely to pay for the fiber. Neighboring Douglass County's PUD is doing the same.
It's a bit more complex than that. I agree that if you have the county backing you it is a lot cheaper, especially since they are doing it in bulk but that doesn't make it "not expensive at all". Having a power pole next to your house doesn't mean the rest of the project is super cheap. It is a massive undertaking.
http://www.broadbandmarkets.com/articles/FTTPfarmLTW701.htm
I still think this is awesome and great and every county should be doing it. This article is a positive view of it but it still shows a little bit of the complexity and cost of this network.
And my point was that starting up a US wide ISP is no small task and for many areas would not be worth it and thus very very few companies or entities would be willing to do so. And the current ISPs count on that to keep prices high and service low.
Quote: Comcast Corp. says it plans to start limiting how much data its customers, which will soon include millions from Time Warner Cable, can use.
According to Computer World, Comcast executive VP David Cohen revealed the cable and Internet service provider would start capping data usage within the next five years. During a media summit with investors in New York on Wednesday, he called it "usage-based billing":
"That is the way you can deliver the equity proposition that heavier users pay more," Cohen said. "It really has nothing to do with [buying TWC]. It's a generic industry-related issue. [It's not] an open Internet issue... We think what we are doing is totally appropriate."
The Verge reports Comcast is testing monthly caps of 300GB (gigabytes) and 600GB in some markets, as well as a "flexible-data" option limited to 5GB. Subscribers who go over those amounts would pay extra fees, similar to the penalty for using too many minutes or text messages on a cell phone plan.
According to Digital Trends, Comcast currently uses 300GB monthly data caps in seven states: Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Tennessee and South Carolina. Users who go over pay $10 for an additional 50GB.
Tech Crunch reports Comcast is "still working out exactly where they can cap things before" customers start complaining and switching providers.
Cohen predicted the majority -- more than 98 percent -- of Comcast's customers wouldn't be affected by data consumption thresholds. However, he did admit it's difficult to predict technology usage, given how much it's changed in the last five years (Netflix, iPads, etc).
And with the company expected to finalize its $45 billion takeover of Time Warner Cable later this year, things could be really different in 2019. For example, another mega-merger is in the works: AT&T is reportedly in talks to buy DirecTV for as much as $50 billion.
But how much is 300GB of data? How much does the average cable television subscriber use versus a cord-cutter?
According to Digital Trends, the average person with Internet-only service uses 212GB of data each month -- more than seven times those who watch traditional television. The bulk of that difference comes from streaming movies and TV shows through services like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Instant Video.
Comcast's Xfinity site has a data calculator that allows users to predict how much data they'd use. A family with five Internet-connected devices (computers, tablets, smartphones, etc.) that streams 16 two-hour HD movies and 20 hour-long TV shows; visits 100 websites; and listens to 40 hours of streaming music uses 310GB per month.
In related news, the FCC voted 3-2 on Thursday to propose new "net neutrality" rules, allowing ISPs to charge content companies (like Netflix) for faster and more reliable delivery.
This is fking lame. I'm on Comcast, and stream Netflix quite a bit, and FFXI of course.
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