If it’s true that your business is only as strong as its weakest link, then casino affiliate marketers in the U.S. could have a big problem: The actual Internet access we rely upon to do our business.
That may seem like an exaggeration, right? How could American web access be anything other than stellar? America pioneered the development of the Internet and how online infrastructures work in the first place.
But it’s precisely because American Internet infrastructure is so old that it’s inferior. Nations like Japan and South Korea that have only created their Internet infrastructure have used newer technology and enjoy much faster speeds because of it.
Lack of Competition in American Internet Infrastructure
The United States has always had an incestuous Internet service landscape, with most major cities monopolized by a single provider (compared to other Western nations, where consumers have more choices).
In truth, America’s Internet infrastructure is the least competitive in the world. The Economist calls the U.S. “the developed market with the least competitive market in internet access.”
“In other rich countries it would not matter if some operators blocked some sites: consumers could switch to a rival provider,” The Economist article continues, describing how the current net neutrality debate affects America differently than other countries. “That is because the big telecoms firms with wires into people’s homes have to offer access to their networks on a wholesale basis, ensuring vigorous competition between dozens of providers, with lower prices and faster connections than are available in America.
“Getting America’s phone and cable companies to open up their networks to others would be a lot harder for politicians than prattling on about neutrality; but it would do far more to open up the net.”
Why doesn’t America have a more competitive Internet access market? If it did, American casino affiliates would enjoy a much lower cost of Internet access. That’d be great for our business, obviously.
An improved American Internet infrastructure would also mean less damage caused by network outages, since there’d be alternate networks to choose from.
Take the problems with Comcast’s Internet service in the Northeast U.S. earlier in December, as the Washington Post reported. Such inferior Internet infrastructure could lead to problems as the demand for higher-bandwidth services increases. (Take Netflix, for example. That company has changed its business plan to focus more on video streaming, which could dramatically increase the amount of online gridlock.)
A Call to Action
For casino affiliates, these kinds of reports should be a call to political action. Even if you didn’t get involved with congress’ recent efforts to regulate online poker, by contacting your local representatives, writing editorials on your website, gathering your friends and family to support the issues — this is potentially a more worthy use of your political time.
And it’s how a democracy is supposed to work: Let your representatives know how you feel, and that you demand they work to de-monopolize the American Internet market. If not, they won’t be getting your vote next time around.