Fiber from the 90's isn't the same as fiber today and in many cases would need to be replaced to meet today's standards. As far as Telco's getting a butt load of money from the government that is total fiction...I've worked in the industry for decades on the front line as a tech and Manager...so I am positive it didn't happen. The only government money ever given to Telco's to provide service came from the Universal Service Fund charges which appear on your phone bills to support service in rural areas...this grew out of the Rural Electrification Act passed in 1935 which paid to extend electricity out to small town America. In my opinion the Rural Electrification Act and Universal Service Fund were two successful examples of Washington actually doing some good for the common man...but there was no fiber build out paid for by the fed's...
In 1994 Verizon (then Bell Atlantic) struck a landmark deal with the state of Pennsylvania. The deal provided Verizon with hefty financial incentives if they met certain broadband rollout criteria. It's estimated that those financial incentives over the years clock in somewhere around $2.1 billion dollars.
As part of that agreement, Bell Atlantic agreed to have 20% of the state broadband wired by 1998, and 50% by 2004. By 2015, broadband would be run throughout the state to the majority of Verizon's customers. It's important to note that this wasn't DSL they were talking about...but 45MB/s symmetrical fiber service right to the door of homes and businesses, ambitious and impractical for certain, but nonetheless included in the language of the agreement. While wiring every home with fiber skirts the limits of reality, the financial benefits received from Verizon in the deal were very real.
It all comes down to the ISP at the end of the day and how greedy they are.
You guys in the U.S and Canada and other countries have it really good when it comes to pricing and bandwidth.
In South Africa we pay exorbitant rates for stupid 4mbps ADSL (NOT FIBRE even)
example, we pay around $80 for a 4mbps including a 20GB cap that cap is already throttled.
if you want a 10mbps uncapped fibre line you are looking at roughly $1000 a month, yep im not joking.
I lived in China for a few years as well, there we got a 10mbps FIbre line with Uncapped unshaped data for $10 a month.
Theres one common denominator.....the ISP.....they have the final say.
NO, the price would probably go up, as the government would add a new tax to cover their overseeing of the Internet service providers, best rule of thumb, never let the government get involved in anything you don't want screwed-up. Look what happened in the marriage area, soon any number of intaties will be getting marriedGreedy bastards get their money, every time people pay a monthly bill. If this did go through would it lower prices? No it wouldn't!! It would only complicate everything.
America does not even have basic health care for it's citizens or basic banking laws, this is no surprise, lucky it only applies to the USA .
The only thing free is your right to be exploited by the rich.