[thomastjeffery]

Don't forget that this is a metaphor.

You are right that the problem is a lack of competition.

The biggest problem with internet companies right now is that there are services like Facebook that people use so prolifically that they are very difficult to compete with. If ISPs began prioritizing Facebook, as they have tried to do before, it will be even more difficult to compete.

The other problem is that ISPs aren't the only ones fighting competition between internet services. There is a long history with media corporations using copyright to fight competition. Most innovative music streaming services have been considered illegal (turntable.fm, Grooveshark, What.CD), unless their business can pay rightsholders (Spotify, ). and adding features to existing services like Netflix involves breaking DRM, which is also illegal.

All of these issues are related in some way, especially since many of the biggest media corporations are the same businesses as the biggest ISPs. These corporations have accrued so much capital that no one can compete with them or their lobbying.