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RE: Cable Co's view: NAT is bad because we want to charge per IP

2001-11-28 10:50:05
Cable companies in Canada charge "per computer" connected to the cable
modems.

This is the subject of several procedures in the CISC HSWG.

See http://www.crtc.gc.ca/cisc/eng/cisf3g8b.htm for a list of
contributions.

-=Francois=-
fmenard(_at_)ims-experts(_dot_)com


-----Original Message-----
From: owner-ietf(_at_)ietf(_dot_)org [mailto:owner-ietf(_at_)ietf(_dot_)org] On 
Behalf Of
Anthony Atkielski
Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2001 7:06 PM
To: ietf(_at_)ietf(_dot_)org; stanislav shalunov
Subject: Re: Cable Co's view: NAT is bad because we want to charge per
IP


You'd think that an ISP, cable-company or not, would tend to charge by
volume or connection time rather than the number of IP addresses in use.
The last of these makes about as much sense as charging for all the one
bits transmitted, and leaving the zeroes free.

----- Original Message -----
From: "stanislav shalunov" <shalunov(_at_)internet2(_dot_)edu>
To: <ietf(_at_)ietf(_dot_)org>
Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2001 23:51
Subject: Cable Co's view: NAT is bad because we want to charge per IP


NAT is an ugly hack that's impairing people's connectivity, right? For

some, it might be.  Others find different faults with NAT. A highly
unusual for an IETFer (and very disturbing) perspective of cable
companies is provided in an article in CED magazine "The CAT and the
NAT" by Leslie Ellis, Technology Analyst:

http://www.cedmagazine.com/ced/2001/1101/11d.htm

(Link appeared on Slashdot.)

This article proceeds to describe NATs as incarnations of everything
evil.  One of the reasons they are so evil, according to Leslie Ellis,

is that they allow users to avoid paying for extra IP numbers:

What's the value of the stolen goods?  Revenues associated with
additional IP addresses, for one.  Let's say one in 10 of the 5
million U.S. cable modem subscribers are usurping IP addresses
without paying the $4.95 per month fee that's typically charged
(beyond a pre-specified limit, which varies MSO to MSO.)  Right off
that bat, that's just shy of $30 million lost, annually.

[I replaced the Microsoft character for the apostrophe with ASCII in
the paragraph above.]

I can see it: "So, you'd like to purchase a /48 with your
eye-pee-vee-sex package?  Are you saying it should be the default
allocation?  I don't know who told you that it should be the default,
but we can do that for you.  It would be for our everyday low price of

$6044629098073145873530880 per month, first month prepaid.  Yes,
that's six septillion, forty-four sextillion, six hundred twenty-nine
queen-... quintillion...  Are you there?  Hello?  We actually do have
a 15% discount package!  Hello?!"

The article then proceeds to describe some snake oil "solution" (the
CAT part) that would "go one step further, essentially saying,
`Pardon, NAT, but what's that behind you?'" (Microsoft characters
replaced with ASCII, again).

The important thing to realize here is that there are many people who
read "THE PREMIER MAGAZINE OF BROADBAND TECHNOLOGY" and absorb the
infinite wisdom of its Techology Analysts.

Boy, am I glad I don't have to deal with a cable company!

"Cable...  Where idiotic business models and complete lack of
understanding of networks are combined!"

P.S.: Just to be clear, the other problem that the article finds with
NAT is that it enables you to share your connection with neighbors.

--
Stanislav Shalunov http://www.internet2.edu/~shalunov/

"Nuclear war would really set back cable [television]."  -- Ted Turner