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Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by tunap on Friday December 16, 2016 @10:29AM (#13193876)
I use a water company analogy. If you use the water for irrigation, you pay $X. If you use it for showering or dishes you pay $Y. If it's for drinking or cooking you pay $Z. Different applications for the same commodity that makes no difference to the provider outside of volume, which you already pay per unit. Should you pay more per unit if you water your lawn, if you have a pool? This is what the data providers are doing to the 'other' supply pipe coming into your home.
Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by foodstances on Friday December 16, 2016 @10:49AM (#13194038)
I think that's a bad analogy. I'm in support of net neutrality but your analogy just made me want to support different pricing for water.

Water is a finite, possibly scarce resource, and there are shortages in places in the US. If I lived in one of those places, I would sure as hell want some asshole filling his pool during a shortage to pay more than the rest of us pay for basic drinking water. Similarly, I would want companies that bottle that water up and sell it at a premium to pay more than everyone else.

Municipalities already limit outdoor water usage for exactly this reason. You can drink all the water you want but you can only use it outside to water your grass or fill your pool on odd or even days. Your analogy is saying that shouldn't be allowed, because internet.

Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by creeble on Friday December 16, 2016 @11:11AM (#13194195)
Perhaps electricity might be a better analogy?
Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by amelius on Friday December 16, 2016 @11:40AM (#13194464)
Nope, it's also a scarce resource. And similarly to water, excessive use is (usually still) bad for the planet.
Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by creeble on Friday December 16, 2016 @12:13PM (#13194784)
But internet connectivity is somehow inherently limitless and deliverable for free?
Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by mjevans on Friday December 16, 2016 @01:54PM (#13195697)
Internet connectivity is all about maximum capacity. Everything past that is just sunk costs.

It doesn't cost anything more to use it at maximum capacity than it does to just leave it on standby. (The end points MIGHT use a TINY bit more power, but we're talking on the order of cents per month for terrabytes/month of traffic; it's a rounding error.)

Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by tunap on Friday December 16, 2016 @07:15PM (#13198116)
The electrical analogy is more closely comparable, but I've found water is a simpler concept for most to comprehend.
Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by shuntress on Friday December 16, 2016 @12:06PM (#13194728)
Bandwidth is also limited.
Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by Spivak on Friday December 16, 2016 @03:04PM (#13196282)
Which is why you pay for 'speed' which is basically a proxy for bandwidth.
Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by qq66 on Friday December 16, 2016 @02:47PM (#13196144)
I think you should pay more per unit for a pool or massive outdoor fountain than for drinking and showering. And the water company does, too -- many water companies charge very little for the first X gallons (for basic needs) and then charge a higher price for usage over that.
Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by tunap on Friday December 16, 2016 @07:34PM (#13198227)
It's not a line-item comparison, it's an explanation of how I pay an agreed upon price to use their resource and delivery system. And what my bits represent does not deserve a premium as long as I pay the agreed upon price per volume, IMO.

The ISPs already offer and charge accordingly for home, business and commercial accounts(all pay more for more volume & speed).

Re:Tom Wheeler Resigns from the FCC by jperras on Friday December 16, 2016 @10:53AM (#13194069)
Fantastic analogy. Will be using this one in the future.