[1676] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Re: The WEIS/AUPPERLE letter
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Laura Breeden)
Tue Dec 10 11:17:53 1991
Date: Tue, 10 Dec 91 08:17:15 PST
From: Laura Breeden <breeden@farnet.org>
To: com-priv@psi.com, drw@BOURBAKI.MIT.EDU, sob@tmc.edu
Regarding competition within "regions" among network service
providers, Stan is correct. There are no exclusive regions
that I am aware of. Several national providers, including
ANS, PSI, and UUNET, operate throughout the U.S. and in
a number of foreign countries. California, Texas, and the New
England states are served by more than one "regional" network.
Several "regional" networks include strong, independent state
networks. Although the IP network industry is still in its
infancy, a competitive environment already exists. Competition
will be further advanced in the coming months as NSF recompetes
the NSFNET backbone award with multiple providers and as more
telcos/RBOCS/systems integrators enter the business.
By the way, FARNET, as an association of service providers
and others interested in the development of the Internet
in ways that support research and education, has taken a
pro-competitive position, believing that more providers,
serving more customers, will result in better choices for
the end user. For more information, see "Recommendations
from the FARNET Board to the NSF..." (host farnet.org,
directory /farnet/farnet_docs/nsf-backbone-rec).
Laura Breeden
Executive Director
FARNET
