Artificial Limitations

Of late, something has been irritating more than usual. The concept and practice of artificially limiting things of a technical nature simply because it’s possible. This has come to the forefront again when Time Warner has started to bill some customers for “excessive” use. Another example is cell phone companies, limiting what a cell phone can do so that it’s necessary to bill the customer to access the data from the phone. These limits are artificial and are only in place so that companies can make money.

Anyone who thinks that there is a substantial cost increase for a cell phone company to allow you to upload the photos from your phone to your computer is insane. It costs them nothing. it costs the same company virtually nothing for you to upload your data from the phone to some website which the cell company maintains. They maintain the website which has a cost, but that cost is offset by the practice of reducing the functionality of your cell phone’s ability to talk directly to your computer and charging you an extra $20 to $30 a month for a “Data Plan.” Another example with the cell phone companies is not allowing cell phones be used as modems which would allow you to access the Internet. Why should it cost you more to access with one device than with another. It’s the same connection after all. But if they allowed it, they wouldn’t have a way to bill more money and thus increase their bottom line.

Another rather annoying example of this is the limit of upload speeds on broadband connections. Understanding that there are people that use upload speeds to illegally upload copyrighted material. However, there are plenty of legitimate uses for increased upload speeds. Here, increased upload speeds would mean the ability to support clients from one location without the need to drive all over town. Also, would allow companies to permit employees to telecommute and be able to work on documents and information at a reasonable transfer speed.

Some artificial limitations are necessary, such as the need for speed limits on the road. These limits are for the public safety and are reasonable. Billing someone extra just so that a company can curb a certain behavior or take advantage of a behavior is just wrong. The downside here is that until people are willing to complain this is not a situation that is likely to change soon. However, it’s important that people understand that sometimes they are just getting ripped off.