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A Proposal for a Flexible Service Plan that is Attractive to Users and Internet Service Providers
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- Authors
- Issue Date
- 2001-04
- Publisher
- IEEE InfoCom2001
- Citation
- IEEE InfoCom2001, Conference on Computer Communications, Anchorage, Alaska, USA, April 2001
- Keywords
- Internet service plans ; user demand for Internet access, ; quality of service, ; experimental studies.
- Abstract
- The current Internet Service Provider market does not offer
different types of service plans for Internet access. The predominant
pricing plan is a flat-rated plan. Since the number of new Internet users is
still growing very fast, there is no real competition in the Internet market.
Consequently, there is no incentive for Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
to focus on certain user groups by offering more attractive pricing plans
in order to differentiate themselves. However, as soon as the number of
new Internet users stagnats, ISPs have to specialize on certain market segments.
Then, the question raises what is an attractive service plan that is
attractive for users, but allows ISPs to build a sustainable business.
Based on empirical results of the INDEX project, we discuss a service
plan for Internet access that might be appreciated by Internet users as
well as by ISPs. This service plan combines the advantages of flat-rate
pricing and usage-based pricing. Using this service plan, users will benefit
by receiving a basic service, but are given the choice of higher quality
whenever they demand. From the ISP perspective, it will help to focus on
certain user groups and limit the peak load on their network.
- Language
- English
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