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Well if the results of a petition launched recently are anything to go by, it would appear so.

Even though over 2,000 people have signed up to the petition, which urges Telecom to drop its prices and get sensible about speeds and data-caps, this number represents just a tiny percentage of the total list of DSL customers.

And therein lies the problem and the danger associated with going off half-cocked and not thinking of the consequences when launching a petition such as this one.

Don't get me wrong -- I'm all in favour of lobbying Telecom or the Telecommunications ombudsman to address the outrageous price and ridiculous limitations of the present DSL offerings, I just think that a petition was not a clever way to do it.

Remember that the vast majority of the general public are easily fooled, and that Telecom has some of the most accomplished spinmeisters in the business. You can bet your bottom dollar that unless this petition gains at least 50,000 names then Theresa's crew will turn things around and see the lack of support as a powerful endorsement of the status quo.

By all means, go and sign up to this petition -- but I for one wish that it had never been launched because I'm absolutely certain that it won't make the 50,000 mark needed to show that a majority of DSL users are dissatisfied.

And, while on the subject of playing into Telecom's hands, I received this response from Malcolm Dick of Slingshot in response to yesterday's column.

Now, while Malcolm night think he's sticking it to Telecom with this uncapped, flat-rate DSL offering, I fear that once again Telecom can turn around and say "see, ISPs can build very competitive offerings around our DSL service -- there's no need for us to adjust our prices."

Now I'm no highly-paid strategist, but it strikes me that too many people are giving too little thought to this whole problem of forcing Telecom to "get real" about the provision of DSL.

Think about it for a moment...

The only *real* way we can get DSL pricing down is through true competition.

The only way we can get true competition is to lobby government to slap Telecom upside the head until they finally allow competitors access to the local loop (and at a reasonable rate).

Forget about bitching to Telecom -- they'll either laugh in your face or twist your petitions and claims of providing a better service into a clever piece of spin that works in their own favour.

Instead, why not write to your MP and demand that (s)he gets off their fat bum and, instead of sitting around contemplating what they'll do with their imminent pay-rise, address a very real problem that is really compromising our "drift" into the 21st century.

Now get to it!

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