Why isn't Internet free for everyone yet?

[Dream]

I just recently dumped my ISP and went with a free ISP in my state. My old ISP has been overcharging me for years, so it felt like a heavy weight has been lifted from my shoulders.

I know that Internet is free in certain places like McDonalds and Libraries, but it still needs to be paid if you are at home for nearly everyone.

Is the main problem we don't have free internet for everyone GREED? It seems like it would be so nice if every computer already came with free internet. ISPs will still need to be around for those that download massive amounts of data every month, but I think casual internet usage with a little downloading shouldn't need to be paid. Is this simply too expensive for the government to provide?

[Methos]

greed...

simple answer really... it's the only real reason for anything nowdays

M

[MacLeod]

Dream wrote:

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I just recently dumped my ISP and went with a free ISP in my state. My old ISP has been overcharging me for years, so it felt like a heavy weight has been lifted from my shoulders.

I know that Internet is free in certain places like McDonalds and Libraries, but it still needs to be paid if you are at home for nearly everyone.

Is the main problem we don't have free internet for everyone GREED? It seems like it would be so nice if every computer already came with free internet. ISPs will still need to be around for those that download massive amounts of data every month, but I think casual internet usage with a little downloading shouldn't need to be paid. Is this simply too expensive for the government to provide?

Sorry but in places like McDonalds the internet isn't technically free. It still has to be paid for somehow, so each and every time you buy a burger and a drink a small part of the cost of that is what covers the operating expense of the internet access.

Libraries if they are operated/owned by the governemnt be it national or local are funded by taxes so once again if you are a tax payer you have paid for it.

A lot of these so called free internet are still paid for by indirect means.

[Alidar Jarok]

Bandwidth is a limited resource. McDonald's isn't charging you for the internet, but that doesn't mean it's free (they pay for your use). Basically, cost is a way of rationing it because, otherwise, we would run out of bandwidth. And, while ground lines are getting cheaper, we're pretty close to hitting a ceiling when it comes to airborne internet (e.g., the kind on your smart phone). We're literally running out of usable radiation. So rather than things constantly improving, we may have hit a peak of unlimited internet that will be scaled back to the point where we can look to right now as the golden age of internet usage.

[R. Star]

Does the concept of entitlement have no limits?

[Dream]

Now please don't start asking where you can get free internet. I don't want you slowing down the network for me and my friends.

Seriously, the info is out there. Not to hard to find it.

[TheGodBen]

I want free electricity. Why isn't electricity free for everyone yet?

[Pingfah]

Is this actually a serious question?

[sojourner]

I suggest googling "economics" and start there.

[JarodRussell]

Because telephone and mailing hasn't been free for everyone either, for the same reasons?

[scotthm]

Dream wrote:

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Is the main problem we don't have free internet for everyone GREED?

And here I thought the reason for wanting free Internet was greed.

Unless it's something produced naturally, someone will always have to pay for it.

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[RoJoHen]

The internet is a service. Services get paid for. Nobody owes you free internet access.

[iguana_tonante]

I'm as socialist as they come, and even I agree this is kind of a dumb question.

[gturner]

It's not all that dumb, it just needs a business model like broadcast TV or radio where advertisers are paying for it. If ISP's had a bit more control over what you saw as you browsed the web (so they could derive ad revenue like the actual websites do), it would probably be workable.

[Temis the Vorta]

Why isnt the internet free for Americans, comsidering that our tax dollars paid to develop the damn thing?

Well our parents' and grandparents' tax dollars, but same diff.

gturner wrote:

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It's not all that dumb, it just needs a business model like broadcast TV or radio where advertisers are paying for it. If ISP's had a bit more control over what you saw as you browsed the web (so they could derive ad revenue like the actual websites do), it would probably be workable.

The problem with internet ads is that advertisers can accurately and directly measure the results, unlike print and TV (so far at least). Which allows them to realize that internet ads don't work.

So they pay bottom dollar, demanding pay-per-click so that they aren't paying for worthless ads. Sometimes they only pay by result - not just a click, but some action taken such as signing up for something or buying something. Since advertisers have all the power, why not demand the moon?

And the number of advertising venues is unlimited, which means an eternally escalating supply but a stable demand. That keeps driving prices down. Putting ISPs in competition with websites just increases the supply and does nothing to affect demand.

Could be that print and TV have always been funded by worthless ads, too. Only the fact that the advertisers couldn't tell which half were worthless has kept the system afloat this far.