[385] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Re: a strategic plan for farnet (and you)
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Richard Mandelbaum)
Fri Mar 15 14:10:30 1991
To: Edward Vielmetti <emv@ox.com>
Cc: rma@tsar.cc.rochester.edu, com-priv@uu.psi.com
In-Reply-To: Your message of Fri, 15 Mar 91 13:28:28 -0500.
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 91 13:56:06 -0500
From: Richard Mandelbaum <rma@tsar.cc.rochester.edu>
If you actually read the document , rather than the table of
contents you wil see that the Marketmaker concept is a discussion
of what the regional networks can do for their constituencies after
they get out of the business of selling bandwidth and servicing
networks. The environment is one of free competition and the
regionals are essentially trying to provide some value-added services
to the ,usually state wide constitutiencies they serve.
I stil fail to see why you consider a voluntarily formed, buyer's
coop- not seller's coop as "something from the days of the
Sugar Trust, Standard Oil, OPEC, etc. a
NYSERNet is migrating toward becoming a Marketmaker.
It has contracted for Internet
services with PSI and does not run an Internet network by itself.
It has recently looked into getting additional
services from other providers such as ANS or Alternet or BBN.
The universities,libraries etc who are affiliated with NYSERNet
have all done so voluntarily and seem quite please with what
NYSERNet is doing for them. The elementary schools and high schools
whose connection to the Internet we are subsidizing also seem
pleased. The names of our affiliates is publicly available and
if you are so inclined you can see how many feel we are coercing
them into doing something that they'd rather not do.
Why is it OK for General Motors to try to get better pricing
FROM A PROVIDER, but not OK for a group of universities to do that.
Do you also attack food buying coops for plotting against large
wholesaler's of food. The article , assumes that in the future the
RBOC's, ATT will be in the business of providing TCP/IP services.
Are you so afraid of the power of the regional networks to harm
such defenseless entities that you feel they shouldn't try to get
good pricing.
By the way the reason that supermarkets can get better prices than
mom & pop groceris is that they have "large groups of customers"
I suggest that you carefully read the article , rather than erecting
a strawman and than demolishing it.
By the way the article is the PERSONAL opinion of the authors
and not anybody's official opinion.
As I mentioned when I sent it to you, it is certainly not
a FARNET document in any way, shape or form.
In any event, I will post the article in text form shortly , so
anyone who is interested can read it for themselves!
I don't have the time to answer all queries, but if people have
questions I will try to get them in Batch Mode (queries not flames),
about once a month.
____________________
