It seems there is always unforeseen consequences when new technology is introduced. An unpredictability that is no fault of the designers or engineers of things like smartphones, often creates a discourse between user, technology, service provider and the market that can be turbulent; It’s the human factor. No matter how predictable analysts or engineers think we may be, as the recent bandwidth problems in the US and Canada attest to, often times it is difficult to plan for the effects of technology and especially social technologies. Earlier this year the Rogers Canada iPhone Data Plan petition made its way around the internet in an attempt to do what the first 60,000 name petition failed to do. Convince Rogers to open the bandwidth floodgates and stop nickle and diming iPhone users with ridiculous overages and hidden costs that were completely arbitrary in the eyes of the consumer. The petition so far stands with over 12,000 signatures and it remains to be seen if Rogers will offer data plans that are competitive with other providers in the US and even in Canada. Canada is one of the few countries that has multiple data plan providers for the iPhone and Bell and Telus have teamed up to offer a more competitive service than Rogers, so why won’t it change?

Meanwhile in the U.S. users have revolted against AT&T in an online demonstration called Operation Chokehold aimed at showing the severe need for more bandwidth and upgrades to the communications infrastructure which is woefully inadequate in the eyes of the consumer.  Both the FCC and AT&T condemned the upstart users and in accordance with the Patriot 1 and 2 Acts have lobbied to have them all rounded up and jailed without legal representation in a secret detention facility as they are a danger to our way of life. (that way of life being one in which we simply accept horrible service while getting bilked by corporate monopolies or government bureaucracies) Just kidding, that last part isn’t verifiable, but I have a friend of a friend who’s a Washington insider (Washington State insider to be precise) and he says they could do it if they really wanted to.

Some analysts have shown concern that bandwidth and internet access are becoming more restrictive in the pursuit of the bottom line. So have the glory days come and gone? Are we going to sign petitions and bang our drums, throw monkey wrenches at the system and demand better service and more bandwidth like the peasants of old?

In a competitive and open market customers shouldn’t have to beg for a fair price and good service, they should be able to maximize the economy of their choices freely by having options i.e. multiple providers competing for their patronage. The monopolies that companies like Rogers and AT&T have enjoyed are not indicative of an open and competitive market though, they have enjoyed dangerously inefficient market power and in both cases they have abused it. There was another country in which many people complained about monopolies and the horrible services and products they provided, Communist Russia.