NP: Stargate SG-1

Last week, the Washington Post reported on some broadband users who were having their Comcast accounts disabled because they were using too much bandwidth. What I didn't see in the coverage of the story is that fundamental difference between cable Internet and DSL. If I remember it right, cable Internet works by installing really big Ted Stevens-approved tubes that everyone in a certain area has to share. DSL, on the other hand, is fixed bandwidth -- albeit somewhat slower speeds -- at the individual subscriber level. Cable companies deal with increased usage by adding more pipes -- so the "series of tubes" thing isn't actually too far off. But there might be an upper bound to how many tubes you can add, so at some point, performance is going to degrade faster than Comcast can keep up.

So, anyway, this seems to be about Comcast trying to maintain its competitive advantage over DSL, although they're trying to maintain it by taking it away what gives them the competitive advantage in the first place. My take on it, anyway.