The Internet and high-speed broadband solutions have become the backbone of sustenance and economic growth for many countries around the world. That’s why any efforts to thwart competition or create unnecessary red tape have been met with scrutiny. Recently Congress proposed a bill entitled “The Data Cap Integrity Act,” which would limit Internet Service Providers’ (ISPs) ability to impose data limitations upon consumers in the name of minimizing network congestion.
The legislation was fueled by results of a new study conducted by The New America Foundation, a not-for-profit organization. Results of the study revealed that data caps imposed for the sole purpose of controlling network traffic were highly ineffective, even counterproductive to innovation and were often used to generate revenue by swindling blasé customers out of their money.
According to an InfoWorld article, the purpose of the new bill is to protect consumers by helping them effectively monitor their consumption of broadband solutions data and to preserve innovation. Proposed measures would make it mandatory for ISPs to offer consumers the tools they need to effectively manage data usage. It also would not allow ISPs to give their own services precedence over those of the competition.
Under the law, ISPs would have to comply with a new industry standard of data measurement, which would help ensure consistency and accuracy in measurement of broadband solutions usage across the board. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC (News - Alert)) would also be permitted to step in and evaluate any data caps imposed to control network congestion to ensure they were actually accomplishing that purpose.
The study conducted by The New American Foundation revealed that ISP claims that data caps help with network congestion are unfounded. Instead, like rush hour traffic, it is network traffic during peak times and not the amount of data used over a monthly billing cycle that truly affects congestion – an issue not effectively addressed by data caps.
The real reason data caps are imposed on broadband solutions is to protect services like traditional cable instead of opening the door for consumers to access over-the-top (OTT) services including Netflix and Hulu (News - Alert) for TV and movie options online. ISPs are expected to counter that income from data caps that will be reinvested back into the broadband solutions market to reach the unserved and underserved populations.
But a more effective way of reaching these groups may be through the use of the Actelis broadband accelerator (BBA). A BBA runs over existing telephone lines, eliminating the need to invest in costly infrastructure. With BBA technology, a greater than 50 percent reach improvement can be achieved along with 300 percent greater bandwidths. Its robust hardware is designed to weather the elements and even has a bypass feature in the event of a POTS failure. It’s easy to install, and no extra power supply is needed.
The Actelis (News - Alert) BBA provides a cost-effective solution for carriers to reach the unserved and underserved markets. With the BBA, carriers can also quickly increase their revenue streams by adding OTT services and IPTV (News
- Alert) to their broadband solutions mix.
Want to learn more about the latest in communications and technology? Then be sure to attend ITEXPO Miami 2013, Jan 29- Feb. 1 in Miami, Florida. Stay in touch with everything happening at ITEXPO (News - Alert).
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Edited by Stefanie Mosca