Sponsor's Message

At first glance, one can't help but feel that these new plans, with their higher speeds and option of a soft cap, are a great step forwards for broadband users here in NZ.

Even after a second glance, they're a whole heap better than the existing JetStream Starter or the more recently introduced 256Kbps offerings.

However, this is a good-news, bad-news story for almost everyone including Telecom, ISPs, content providers, and those who might be attracted to these new packages.

First the good news: yes, this is an affordable, flat rate service that will offer speeds of 256Kbps for up to the first 10GB of monthly data transfer.

What's more, if you accidentally (or deliberately) exceed your data cap, you'll either pay just 5 cents a MB on the 1GB and 3GB plans, or hit a soft-cap that simply slows your connection to "dial-up speeds" on the 10GB option.

More good news -- other ISPs will be able to resell these packages to their own users, in the same way that JetStream Starter is currently resold by a great many Kiw ISPs.

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But now the bad news.

Firstly, as a user you'll need to be aware that, unlike JetStream Starter, *all* traffic sent or received counts towards your data cap. That means if you do a lot of local file transfers or browse a lot of local websites, you may find yourself hitting your data-cap a lot sooner than you did while you were on JS-Starter.

Secondly, if you're someone who has taken advantage of the competitive toll rates provided by a growing number of independent long-distance carriers such as iHug, Compass, CallPlus, etc -- then you'll have to pay a $10 penalty compared tho those who use Telecom as their primary toll provider.

If you're an ISP, you can resell the product to your customers -- but if you're an ISP that also offers long-distance calling services, you'll either have to pass on that extra $10 per month or be prepared to lose some of these voice customers back to Telecom because of the discount they offer.

The reality is that such ISPs will probably have to consider whether they absorb the $10 discount that Telecom effectively offers those customers, or rely on customer-loyalty to avoid defections.

If you're a content provider then you might want to reconsider investing a huge sum of dosh into creating local broadband content. Whereas JS-Starter allowed users to access as much locally hosted streaming audio and video as they wanted, the new plans will consider every byte to count against a user's data-cap, even if it's served up from just across the road. Suddenly it's no longer attractive to leave your DSL-connected PC tuned into 95bFM's live audio stream all day, lest you chew up too much of your data-cap.

And now the bad news for Telecom.

It is an undeniable fact that for all intents and purposes, Telecom has an almost total monopoly in the DSL marketplace.

It is now also very obvious that these latest DSL plans seek to leverage that monopoly to boost Telecom's toll business.

That's right. No matter who your ISP is, these new services can be had for $10 a month less when you use Telecom as your toll provider.

Perhaps this wouldn't matter quite as much -- if it weren't for the fact that a number of those ISPs who might wish/need to resell these services in order to remain competitive, will be forced to risk losing their toll customers as a result.

While I can't help but commend Telecom for their new offerings, I must also condemn them for this blatant abuse of their DSL monopoly, and I certainly hope the Commerce Commission takes a good long look at this situation.

I also hope that the government takes note that, unless the local loop is unbundled, Telecom has once again proven that it will make the most of every opportunity to unfairly exploit its monoploy position to the cost of its competition -- which ultimately means, to the cost of consumers.

If our politicians have half a brain (and that's a hig "if"), I think Telecom's arrogance may have unintentionally swayed the jury closer towards forcing local-loop unbundling.

New Forums!
Yes folks, good news. The grotty ezboard forums have been replaced with a new phpBBS-based system that won't assault you with a myriad of pop-ups and other flotsam.

A big thanks to Managed Internet Solutions for offering to provide this service.

You can access the new forums over at aardvarkforums.co.nz

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