Re: Dumb concept - stop being lazy and just run the fiber to the home
You seem to think that everywhere is like where you live. It isn't. Not to mention, you're comparing the costs of replacing the "last mile" copper with fibre, compared with running new copper. The problem with that is the copper already exists, so the cost of running the fibre is being balanced against a zero cost for upgrade of the copper...
If you've got a highly dense urban population, running FTTP is relatively cost effective, but reduce that density and suddenly the costs are high enough that the company would never make their investment back. Ever. This is why the UK government is investing in rolling out high speed internet to rural areas itself. Its why the cable companies that exist now are not the ones that ran the cables in the first place - they have all just been bought out over time as each little company failed.
So, I'd counter that your "tiny fraction" is actually a "majority percentage" of the cost.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
