Internet: How much do you pay?
Posted: Wed Sep 10, 2014 1:12 pm
I ask the question because I have just changed over my Internet ADSL package to Fibre Optic; so from this side of the Atlantic, I am just curious to know what kind of deals and prices are on offer across the North American Continent.
By way of comparison, before the changeover I was on an unlimited ADSL contract at a monthly discounted cost of 10 GBP (15.75 U$D). However, in order to get that discounted price I also had to rent my fixed telephone landline from my internet service provider at a cost of either 12.95 GBP (20.00 U$D) paid monthly or 132 GBP (207.25 U$D) paid 12-month in advance. Free UK landline-to-landline calls weekends and weekday evenings included.
By way of a bit of UK background, some years back when fibre optic began getting rolled out across this little island of ours, BT (the former state operated British Telecommunications) was a bit slow getting there act together. They (BT) jealousy guard and control some 95% of the landline network infrastructure here in the UK by means of a monopoly in all but name. Consequently, the UK market regarding fibre optic deals was relatively immature and not particularly competitive. There were also early moves regarding cable (which as I understand it is big in the States) however, that is most definitely a dead duck here in the UK. Rupert Murdock and the proliferation of BSkyB (British Sky Broadcasting) with some 10-million subscribers saw to that.
However, it’s noticeable of late that things are starting to change as UK fibre optic networks become more widespread and readily available. Previously stubborn high prices are starting to come down as witnessed by this deal on offer from my internet service provider …
Basically, for the same monthly cost of my unlimited ADSL connection I’ve now got unlimited fibre optic. The only change of contract conditions being I’m tied to my ISP for 18 months whereas before I could just give them 30 days notice if I wanted to move. While UK ADSL contracts are still generally for an initial 12-month period, nearly all fibre optic contracts are for an initial 18 months.
This was the ADSL download and upload speeds I was getting …
This is the fibre optic download and upload speeds I’m now getting …
There is unsubstantiated (albeit growing) gossip that UK ISPs are ‘throttling’ existing ADSL customers in an effort to persuade them to switch to faster – and potentially, more expense – fibre optic connections. Obviously, UK ISPs fervently deny such practices but nevertheless, such suspicions persist within the independent ISP online monitoring community.
By way of comparison, before the changeover I was on an unlimited ADSL contract at a monthly discounted cost of 10 GBP (15.75 U$D). However, in order to get that discounted price I also had to rent my fixed telephone landline from my internet service provider at a cost of either 12.95 GBP (20.00 U$D) paid monthly or 132 GBP (207.25 U$D) paid 12-month in advance. Free UK landline-to-landline calls weekends and weekday evenings included.
By way of a bit of UK background, some years back when fibre optic began getting rolled out across this little island of ours, BT (the former state operated British Telecommunications) was a bit slow getting there act together. They (BT) jealousy guard and control some 95% of the landline network infrastructure here in the UK by means of a monopoly in all but name. Consequently, the UK market regarding fibre optic deals was relatively immature and not particularly competitive. There were also early moves regarding cable (which as I understand it is big in the States) however, that is most definitely a dead duck here in the UK. Rupert Murdock and the proliferation of BSkyB (British Sky Broadcasting) with some 10-million subscribers saw to that.
However, it’s noticeable of late that things are starting to change as UK fibre optic networks become more widespread and readily available. Previously stubborn high prices are starting to come down as witnessed by this deal on offer from my internet service provider …
This was the ADSL download and upload speeds I was getting …