
Gov report bizarrely claims net neutrality repeal raised incomes $50B a year - belltaco
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/02/trump-report-bizarrely-claims-net-neutrality-repeal-raised-incomes-50b-a-year/
======
dmix
It's obvious they are just making shit up and referenced something unrelated
(DSL deregulation) to make it seem legitimate. The person who wrote it
probably knew it was a stretch. I don't see how this article is that
interesting or will generate much interesting conversations here on HN.

This is politics baseless future-promises 101 stuff, just at a new completely
not-giving-a-shit level. Which is only mildly interesting.

The question of whether the deregulation will do anything at all is still open
to be seen. I've long said that tiered ISP pricing will never be a thing (ie,
Comcast offering a "movies and social network package" vs a normal broadband
monthly deal or mobile operators doing the same), regardless of lack of FCC
protection, because it just doesn't make any sense as a business model or
service, not to mention it would face a big industry backlash - an industry
the whole arrangement relies on. But I got downvoted plenty before on HN early
on by people who think we need it written down into law and enforced by FCC,
regardless of its practicality, which I guess is fair.

But I still see very little (or almost zero) industry movement towards any of
those scenarios people were claiming was going to happen a year or two ago
during all the hysteria over the move to "deregulate" the FCC.

There was always far more in the way of those anti-net neutrality worst-case
scenarios becoming reality than the FCC, IMO. The proposed scenarios only
vaguely make sense in the developing world, not in the US, in places where you
could bottom out pricing for access to networks, but it's already so cheap and
established I don't see how any company could survive legitimately offering
artificially limited internet access (beyond government protected oligopolies
like we have here in Canada all agreeing to do it at the same time, which is
again a huge stretch and nothing to do with the FCC).

~~~
AlexandrB
> I've long said that tiered ISP pricing will never be a thing (ie, Comcast
> offering a "movies and social network package" vs a normal broadband monthly
> deal or mobile operators doing the same), regardless of lack of FCC
> protection, because it just doesn't make any sense as a business model or
> service, not to mention it would face a big industry backlash - an industry
> the whole arrangement relies on.

This argument is bizarre because it’s already a thing! Just not in the US. For
example, Telcel Mexico offers unlimited “social media” plans[1].

It’s not clear why US carriers have not moved forward with similar plans.
Perhaps they’re waiting for the patchwork of state net neutrality laws to be
repealed/overturned. But this isn’t some purely hypothetical business model.

[1] [https://www.telcel.com/](https://www.telcel.com/)

~~~
tboyd47
They are absolutely moving forward with similar plans under the banner of
"5G." 5G is nothing but a big Trojan Horse. I am amazed that more tech people
have not caught onto this yet.

[https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S03085...](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0308596117302239)

~~~
throwaway3157
> 5G is nothing but a big Trojan Horse.

What does this mean?

~~~
tboyd47
5G a total rebuild of the internet being sold to consumers (ineffectively) as
an upgrade for higher speeds, while the true purpose is to enable non-net-
neutral service agreements with network slicing.

------
cs702
This is the sort of "made up data that is politically convenient" that I would
expect to see only from the most corrupt governments in some of the poorest,
most underdeveloped parts of the world, not from the most powerful nation on
earth. I'm speechless.

~~~
matheusmoreira
Why would the USA not be corrupt just because it's a powerful nation? It
covertly surveils its entire population and can strip citizens of their rights
if they think they're terrorists. If anything, their power just makes the
corruption worse.

~~~
beepboopbeep
Because it's a democracy with a very well established bureaucratic epidermis
that stretches from federal to local level. It's a vast and complex entity
that operates on defined rules.

Until trump, the infection of fickle, cynical politics never made it very deep
because the folks operating in that bureaucratic layer were career people with
operational ethics (and frankly were quite boring-- by design), not nominated
people. The sycophants are purging those people now. The rot is making its way
deeper into the inner workings of the country like a cancer.

Now they're not afraid of lying because that's what their rulers want them to
do. Do whatever it takes to make the boss look good or suffer the
consequences. That's the kind of behavior you expect from North Korea. Not the
USA.

~~~
omgwtfbbqhihihi
Well developed does not mean that it is well designed.

~~~
beepboopbeep
Apparently it was because we've been spared this north korea nonsense for so
long.

------
aSplash0fDerp
If they charged by the KB, it could have been over $100B a year....

Fake numbers and political theater are not a substitute for substance, and
since the stewards in government have officially gone mad (a front for an
embezzlement scheme), we should just go ahead and fast-forward a best-case
scenario for a poisoned well.....

In a whimsical kind of way, we just need the greybeards to agree that TCP/IP
did not get it right (the 1st time) and go back to the drawing/drafting board
to innovate a more robust offering of encapsulation.

Bullies winning all of the special Olympic trophies has never been
particularly entertaining, but I guess their persistence is something to be
admired. Maybe they are special?!?!?!

------
pbhjpbhj
Wouldn't that show it harmed the consumer, to the tune of $50B (~$170 each)?

I just heard Ajit Pai (sp?) talking on Freakonomics podcast, he was lying
really effectively. Impressive interviewing nonetheless, probing but not
badgering.

------
mistrial9
not long ago ... [https://boingboing.net/2017/10/28/warning-taken-as-
suggestio...](https://boingboing.net/2017/10/28/warning-taken-as-
suggestion.html)

------
anm89
ANY time I see figures about how much money or economic activity some piece of
legislation generated, I value it at precisely zero.

There are no accounting standards for it, it's never audited, it's just people
throwing out a narrative.

This one demonstrates this point as clearly as ever.

------
notgoodrobot
Maybe it's saving from lobbying?

------
skyzyx
The liar is lying.

