The New York Times Bits blog has a post about how a Japanese company can upgrade their broadband service to 160 megabit/second broadband for $20 a home. Saul Hensell contrasts this with Verizon, who is spending $817 per home. Sadly, Mr. Hensell’s attempt to explain this difference falls short of believability. Instead of “less competition”, “no demand”, and “fear of losing TV revenue” a better explanation is “population density”. Mr. Hensell explains that the super-fast modem in Japan costs $60, up from $30; which leaves us wondering where the $20-upgrade fee comes from. One explanation is that it’s the average price per home – in Tokyo, where J:COM is based. But the population density in Tokyo is 14,410 people per sq mile; compared to 2,181 in New York City, and 409 in New York State. The infrastructure costs per home will therefore be considerably less in Japan.
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