[RndTbl] blocklists (was: Grey-listing in effect on MUUG server)

[Sydney Weidman]

On Sat, 2006-11-18 at 16:31 -0600, Sean Walberg wrote:
> On 11/18/06, Trevor Cordes <trevor at tecnopolis.ca> wrote:
>  
>         Two problems: 1) control; 2) cost.  No matter how inexpensive,
>         you're
>         still looking at adding $15-$25/month.  When unfettered access
>         to all
>         ports (within bandwidth usage limits) should be free, why
>         spend $250
>         more per year?  And if you migrate off your email/web/etc
>         services to a
> 
> That level of control isn't worth $250/yr?  If not, you should
> question your need for those extra features.
> 
> 

I don't in principle mind someone charging what the market will bear,
rather than just a shade above marginal cost, but I don't much like it
in a situation where my choice is limited. And of course, that's
invariably where such pricing behaviour crops up. I think the level of
competition that exists in network connectivity is qualitatively
different from that which exists in other types of markets, say, retail
coffee. Unregulated private network infrastructure results in either
massive duplication or inadequate competition, and the cost excesses of
both problems get passed along to consumers. 

Another difference between coffee and networks is that moving from one
brand of coffee to another is relatively easy. The substitutability upon
which real market competition depends is much more difficult to achieve
for wired networks than other types of "products", I suspect.

I sympathize with Trevor's complaint entirely.

Regards,
Syd