North American Network Operators Group

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Re: FW: ISPs slowing P2P traffic...

  • From: Barry Shein
  • Date: Tue Jan 15 15:40:57 2008

This is amazing. People are discovering oversubscription.

When we put the very first six 2400bps modems for the public on the
internet in 1989 and someone shortly thereafter got a busy signal and
called support the issue was oversubscription. What? You mean you
don't have one modem and phone line for each customer???

Shortly thereafter the fuss was dial-up ISPs selling "unlimited"
dial-up accounts for $20/mo and then knocking people off if they were
idle to accomodate oversubscription. But as busy signals mounted it
wasn't just idle, it was "on too long" or "unlimited means 200 hours
per month" until attornies-general began weighing in.

And here it is over 18 years later and people are still debating
oversubscription.

Not what to do about it, that's fine, but seem to be discovering
oversubscription de novo.

Wow.

It reminds me of back when I taught college and I'd start my first
Sept lecture with a puzzled look at the audience and "didn't I explain
all this *last* year?"

But at least they'd laugh.

Hint: You're not getting a dedicated megabit between chicago and
johannesburg for $20/month. Get over it.

HOWEVER, debating how to deal with the policies to accomodate
oversubscription is reasonable (tho perhaps not on this list) because
that's a moving target.

But here we are a week later on this thread (not to mention nearly 20
years) and people are still explaining oversubscription to each other?

Did I accidentally stumble into Special Nanog?

-- 
        -Barry Shein

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