Syniks
18-08-2005, 15:05
Ok, here is somthing that came to mind this morning that might need a little development.
First, equate the Internet to the World.
Since a Government is largely the way in which an individual is capable of dealing with the World at Large, then an ISP can be related to a Government.
An ISP, like a Government, "allows" its Citizens/Users only a certain amount of autonomy/freedom.
I think we can agree AOL is an example of an high-tax Authoritarian, Nanny-State system (it even makes it "hard to leave" by infecting your computer with impossible to remove crap). Yet, in the US anyway, AOL holds 24% of the market share, showing that people don't mind being led by (or paying through) the nose.
How would you rate other ISPs as a political system (using freedom as a base indicator)?
Market Share, US ISPs, Aug 1, 2005
1. America Online (all U.S. AOL brand accounts), [24.0%]
2. United Online [3.2M paid, 2.0M free dialup, 1.3M free webhosting], [6.9%]
3. Comcast (cable broadband), [6.8%]
4. EarthLink (DSL, dialup, cable, satellite, webhosting, and PLC), [5.7%]
5. SBC (DSL only), [4.9%]
6. Road Runner (cable broadband), [4.1%]
7. Verizon (DSL only), [3.5%]
8. Cox (cable broadband), [2.5%]
9. BellSouth (DSL only), [2.0%]
10. Charter (cable broadband and 7,300 dialup accounts), [1.9%]
11. Adelphia (cable broadband), [1.4%]
12. Cablevision (cable broadband), [1.3%]
13. Qwest (DSL only), [1.0%]
14. Covad (broadband only), [0.6%]
15. Mediacom (cable broadband), [0.4%]
16. Insight BB (cable broadband), [0.3%]
17. ALLTEL (DSL only), [0.2%]
18. Hughes DIRECWAY (satellite broadband), [0.2%]
19. Citizens (DSL only), [0.2%]
20. LocalNet (dialup and cable broadband), [0.1%]
21. Cincinnati Bell (DSL only), [0.1%]
22. CenturyTel (DSL only), [0.1%]
23. GCI (61,200 cable broadband and 39,900 dialup), [0.1%]
24. All other U.S. ISPs combined, [31.5%]
First, equate the Internet to the World.
Since a Government is largely the way in which an individual is capable of dealing with the World at Large, then an ISP can be related to a Government.
An ISP, like a Government, "allows" its Citizens/Users only a certain amount of autonomy/freedom.
I think we can agree AOL is an example of an high-tax Authoritarian, Nanny-State system (it even makes it "hard to leave" by infecting your computer with impossible to remove crap). Yet, in the US anyway, AOL holds 24% of the market share, showing that people don't mind being led by (or paying through) the nose.
How would you rate other ISPs as a political system (using freedom as a base indicator)?
Market Share, US ISPs, Aug 1, 2005
1. America Online (all U.S. AOL brand accounts), [24.0%]
2. United Online [3.2M paid, 2.0M free dialup, 1.3M free webhosting], [6.9%]
3. Comcast (cable broadband), [6.8%]
4. EarthLink (DSL, dialup, cable, satellite, webhosting, and PLC), [5.7%]
5. SBC (DSL only), [4.9%]
6. Road Runner (cable broadband), [4.1%]
7. Verizon (DSL only), [3.5%]
8. Cox (cable broadband), [2.5%]
9. BellSouth (DSL only), [2.0%]
10. Charter (cable broadband and 7,300 dialup accounts), [1.9%]
11. Adelphia (cable broadband), [1.4%]
12. Cablevision (cable broadband), [1.3%]
13. Qwest (DSL only), [1.0%]
14. Covad (broadband only), [0.6%]
15. Mediacom (cable broadband), [0.4%]
16. Insight BB (cable broadband), [0.3%]
17. ALLTEL (DSL only), [0.2%]
18. Hughes DIRECWAY (satellite broadband), [0.2%]
19. Citizens (DSL only), [0.2%]
20. LocalNet (dialup and cable broadband), [0.1%]
21. Cincinnati Bell (DSL only), [0.1%]
22. CenturyTel (DSL only), [0.1%]
23. GCI (61,200 cable broadband and 39,900 dialup), [0.1%]
24. All other U.S. ISPs combined, [31.5%]