OPINION

New entity could offer low-cost Internet to students

In response to your commentary «Narrow minds on broadband use» of August 10: When we speak about students, we speak about a country’s future. So, we should ensure students have all necessary means to achieve success, not only for their benefit, but for the sake of the country’s future. To apply this philosophy to your editorial, all students should have reasonable access to high-speed Internet services, both at school and at home. However, the legitimate protests from private Internet service providers – as well as the Hellenic Telecoms Organization’s (OTE) promise to offer lower prices but only after increasing the number of subscribers – seem to be preventing the achievement of what should be a common goal. Perhaps some broad(band) perspective is in order?  I feel that a potential solution might be found somewhere in between the parties’ concerns. For example, why don’t the major private companies, along with OTE, create a separate entity with the sole purpose of providing students with low-cost high-speed Internet services? The participating Internet providers could then share the responsibilities of providing the related services and also divide the costs, and perhaps even losses, in return for some positive publicity. This separate entity could be self-administered, or if need be, run by the schools or government. In return for their goodwill, the participating Internet providers would be a preferred choice of many future graduates who will then be paying fair-market price for these services. After all, the Internet providers must understand that they exist for the people, as well as because of the people. Jim Perdikis, Montreal, Canada

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