Troubled times for home networks
Technology Correspondent, BBC News website — There are many technologies that only prove how useful they are when you actually try them. — Take for instance, broadband. The high price may have initially put people off but for those that tried it …
Context & Ripple Effects
In August 2007 the BBC's technology correspondent argues that home networking has hit the same wall broadband did early on: the technology only shows its value once people live with it, but getting there means wading through configuration that ordinary households find hostile. Ars Technica's same-day pickup — 'home networking still too complex for most users' — shows the complaint travelled well beyond one column, landing at the exact moment when multi-PC homes, laptops and wireless were pushing networks from hobbyist kit into mainstream living rooms.
First-order effects
- Households buying a second PC or a laptop in 2007 face a setup and troubleshooting burden that falls either on themselves or on their broadband provider's support line, making the router — not the connection — the new point of failure.
Second-order effects
- Internet service providers and router makers are pushed toward pre-configured, plug-and-play hardware and managed installation, because every failed self-install is a support call and a churn risk on the subscription they actually monetise.
Third-order effects
- If complexity stays the gatekeeper, home networking consolidates around whoever controls the customer relationship — the ISP shipping the box — rather than the enthusiast-grade equipment vendors who defined the category.
The trend: Consumer networking is following broadband's own arc from early-adopter DIY project to utility-style service, with ease of use deciding which companies own the home.