Now that Starhub has given us the wonder of 100Mbit/s download, how many takers will there be.
MANY, but not enough.
Without wading through the complications of bypassing traffic shaping (read `choking') targeting bittorrent protocol packets, without widespread education on peer-to-peer download technologies, and without massive download technologies like Bittorrent getting to the mainstream consciousness because of the perceived `illegality' of these services, most of this country can't really use the 100Mbit/s speed.
Online music is not uncommon. Only that the Digital Rights Management makes even the nerds falter. No standard DRM exists today, nor will it foreseeably exist tomorrow. Apple's boss Steve Jobs is lambasting DRM (just last week). We all know how sucky DRM can be, and that at least there's some complication for you to transfer your Itunes music from one PC to another.
The underground is fiercely `torrenting' terabytes of content every day and night. And this underground is so small compared to the total number of internet users.
Let me again call for the abolition of DRM, which is no use to most people anyway - complicating the life of legal users and totally bypassed by those who choose to bypass it, and ignored by those who, not knowing how DRM works and not knowing how to bypass it online, get their stuff from their friends' thumbdrives or portable hard disk drives.
Let's have the MDA make a scheme where all subscribers to internet services pay an additional 10 bucks or so a month, for the RIGHT to download and distribute whatever they want online, and this money goes to a fund to pay the content providers according to their popularity indexed in P2P indices worldwide.
This blogpost seems cryptic simply because the background knowledge required is difficult, and I don't have the mood to babyfy it. But those who read it and understand it, please consider it and write about it yourself. Because, I REALLY WANT the content providers to survive. The torrenters will always be there, in some form or another. It's the content providers I'm worried about.
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9 comments:
Have u seen the Al Gore movie, "the inconvinent truth"? Catch it if u can!
I am no scientist but at the rate we are emitting C02 and other gases, surely the time will come where nature is unable to cope with our onslaught... at least i have switched off my modem and tvs when not in used... cheers
See here: http://miketan.blogspot.com/2006/11/thatchers-advisor-debunks-assertions-of.html
Global warming's not my area. BUT, perhaps it'll be better to download rather than to stamp media for content distribution.
"Let's have the MDA make a scheme where all subscribers to internet services pay an additional 10 bucks or so a month, for the RIGHT to download and distribute whatever they want online, and this money goes to a fund to pay the content providers according to their popularity indexed in P2P indices worldwide."
Man, you gotta be kidding, right? This is like getting the man on the street to pay road tax when he don't even drives.
must have been too brief. It should be an OPT-IN scheme. If one doesn't opt-in, and yet downloads, he is not proof of prosecution. Of course, once many pay, those who don't and yet get 100Mbit/s bandwidth, well, they can be watched by hawks for any infringement. Makes enforcement easier too!
Now tell me if this scheme is draconian.
Ha ha ha! Knowing very well that Singaporeans want everything to be cheap (free is even better) and good, I doubt the opt-in scheme will work. The ISPs and authorities will have their hands full trying to monitor.
On top of that, we are also taking about delivery of TV over IP. These are bandwidth sucking apps. It wouldn't be fair to those who subscribe to IPTV services. These people will feel like being taxed 2 times over.
And what about those who download free open source softwares (eg Linux DVDs)?
Personally, I think that the copyright issues (ie piracy) are problems of an industry or business. The authorities/government/police, taking tax payers' monies, should never be involved. If I'm not wrong, in the USA, these issues are considered civil issues. It's up to the content owner to bring those infringers to the court.
Stop trying to use "open source softwares" download as an excuse to cover up your bittorrent activities. There's a limit to how much "open source softwares" you can download as opposed to illegal contents. I am sure they didn't give a direct link to the "open source softwares" for no reason.
I'm new in Singapore and have just signed up for the 100 mb starhub service. I moved from the UK and have only ever used ADSL so have no experience of cable. They're giving me the motorola sb6100 modem, but I want a home LAN, so will need a router. Now, if I'm right, I can use my old ADSL modem/4-port ethernet router/802.11G w-ap; obviously the ADSL modem function will be irrelevant but it will still do 10/100 ethernet and w-ap; presumably all I have to do is point the router at the IP of the modem and tell it to use that as a gateway, then plug everything else in? Or am I expecting life to be too simple? Please drop me a line at luke.d.osullivan@gmail.com if you read this to let me know, I'd appreciate the help.
DRM was destined to fail with no users in the first place. It was a good try-out and something for big software houses to impress the Hollywood or records people but well...we know better.
I think the speed is something else too, contents, or the lack of it is really concerning. Why don't the telcos concentrate on other tech that can and totally possible to have come with these speeds?! See http://moonshine.homedns.org:2655/wp-gl/2007/10/21/1gbps
Like cheaper static IP for homes? IPv6?
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