Comment by atburrow | Hacker News Reader

Comment by atburrow | Hacker News Reader

In Chicago, I'm currently living in a high rise where the fastest plan I can get is 24 Mbps for around $80/mo. My high rise has an exclusivity contract with AT&T U-Verse. I've spoken with AT&T reps and they can't offer any higher speeds. I also talked to property management and they said there's nothing they can do for me. They are locked into an exclusivity contract with AT&T for the wires in the building.

Does anyone have experience dealing with properties who claim to have exclusivity contracts? I talked to people at Webpass, and they've stated it is available in my area. They'd come in and set everything up free of charge. I don't see the downside for my building to allow Webpass to come in.

I'm in a high rise in Boston, similar situation but with Comcast. I also spoke with Webpass a few days ago, they say that my building has a revenue sharing exclusive agreement with Comcast and that Webass does not participate in revenue sharing agreements. This feels like it should be illegal but my sister, an attorney, did not see anything obviously wrong under current law.

I'd like to see that change.

in a MDU, the owner owns the common spaces. that includes risers and inside wiring. they're free to sell, lease, or restrict the rights to whomever they please.

just like wifi ratings for hotels have become a "thing", so must exclusivity agreements and broadband providers when it comes to apartment/housing hunting.

it would be extremely difficult bordering on impossible, in my opinion, for a law in the US to prohibit property owner rights in a fashion that prevents these kind of agreements. only a "market" solution would work here. and of course, that's very difficult on its own.

Typically the exclusivity agreement is a marketing exclusivity only. It's also true that AT&T may have maintained ownership of the lines, especially if it is fiber direct to the unit. If that's the case, any new provider would need to install new lines, which is costly once the building is complete. The ROI likely won't pencil for the new provider.

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