RE: Cogent/Level 3 depeering

["Hannigan, Martin" <hannigan () verisign com>]

> Now Cogent is also offering free transit for single-homed
> L3 customers to spite L3 after depeering - majority of such 
> single-homed
> transit customers are in fact these dsl/dialup ISPs Cogent is after
> which is why they were willing to make this offer ...

Didn't the free peering offer happen _yesterday_ as a result of the 
disengagement? It's a tactic. Tommorrow, Level(3)
could come out with the same. It's not sustainable by either. Nothing
is free. We all know this. 

> Now with 0 transit cost and 0 equipment cost (mostly old 
> dialup equipment 
> loans for which have by now been paid for) 

You mean amortization? Yes, it's about that. They deployed most
of the dial gear in 98, 99. I'm sure augmentations happened after
that. Anyhow. What you don't understand is the architecture sans
TDM switching, ala SS7 bypass. That's what makes the $5 nut a
reality.

> its no wonder 
> dialup providers 
> are able to offer it at $5/mo if somebody else takes care of 
> the customer 
> support & billing ...

That's what the other $1 to $10 dollars the retailers are charging
is for, William.

-M<