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Originally Posted by wizwor
Since that company is in business five years later, how can anyone believe Comcast is not using their monopoly power to gouge the consumer?
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Whenever an exchange happens on the free market, it only happens because both sides believe they come out ahead in the deal. If consumers believe they are losing out, they won't purchase the product. Consumers can only be gouged when they are forced to make an exchange.
In the short run, Comcast may be able to take advantage of their market position. But they will create an incentive for competitors to enter those markets, and if enough people switch to a different service, they'll find their practices to be against their best interests and change them.
Any time there is a developing market, which Internet-delivered television definitely is, there are periods of adjustment and growth. Nobody needs television, and nobody needs it to be streamed to their home. It is a luxury good, and doubly so when we're talking about Internet-delivered video. And luxury goods often go through periods of high prices before they become commodities.
We might as well be arguing the price of yachts.