[wcchandler]

Why don't we see more startups in the fiber-to-the-premises realm? Is cost really that high and difficult to obtain? HN has led me to believe that a good idea with motivated founders will get funded, no matter what. And I can't think of a better time to enter this market.

[rayiner]

Because FTTP involves massive upfront costs with no hope of 10x or 100x returns. Say you sell fiber at $70/month. The operating profit margin of a company like Charter, which doesn't have a media-arm to rely on, is like 10-15%. So per year, each subscriber is worth $80-126. Over 10 years, discounted, that's under a grand. And to wire them up, you have to spend about that much if not more, up-front.

[adventured]

And that's when companies like Charter aren't busy going bankrupt.

[bluedino]

People are probably more likely to fun a startup with a few million in hopes of cashing out later for 50-100x the initial investment. Not spend $84 million to build out a city like Kansas City, and then who knows how much income they get back from subscribers or how much it costs to support.