Economic fundamentals of the internet

Put yourself in the place of the Telcos and Baby Bells: What's the best way to spend a little money to make a lot of money?

Well, if you're Verizon, it works like this:

Lobbying expenses for last year:

$4.2 million

Revenue last year, representing over 15% return on investment and 9.13% profit margin for Verizon:

$79.68 billion

(Special Oregon angle:) Donating to PAC of Senator Gordon Smith in 2005 through May 29th 2006 (Smith is on the Senate Commerce Committee, where the fate of the Net Neutrality amendment was decided today):

$1000

Killing in committee the amendment that would have preserved Net Neutrality, meaning that the access providers like Verizon can control--and limit--our access to eBay, Yahoo!, YouTube, or whoever, in preference for providers who agree to sweetheart deals with the ISPs:

Priceless.

Let the increased subscription costs and reduced access begin!