This past year Usenet providers have taken powerful steps to increase their market share, which is great news for all of us. This battle has been waged on a number of fronts, some logical (meaning they provide a true benefit for users), and others that seem somewhat illogical or irrelevant. Here are a few trends we have noticed that make sense, and a few that seem off the mark.
Trends that make sense:
Increasing Binary Retention:
We like the fact that most companies are on the binary retention bandwagon and feel that this trend is of clear benefit to users – longer retention times generally mean better access to more content. However, we do believe that at some point there will need to be a consolidation phase, where providers slow their pursuit of increased retention in favor of ensuring quality of service, realizing the financial benefits of a broader user base, and taking time to pursue some of the other meaningful trends noted in this article.
Competition on binary retention also begs the question of how much is enough to meet the true needs of users. 365 days? 730 days? 1095 days? Most users do turn to Usenet to download current content. One other thing we have been pondering is how long the providers offering deep discounting will be able to add new server farms to aggressively increase binary retention while not compromising their financial wellbeing or their service in other areas. Predictions:
• Providers will hit a point of diminishing returns at around the 450-500 day point. If there is further competition in this area, it will be in ensuring true as opposed to web retention.
• Deep discounting may begin to dry up after providers have hit a level of retention that satisfies the upper quartile of more demanding users. All the more reason to take advantage of the deals available now.
SSL Encryption:
We personally like the trend of vendors including SSL with all plans. Privacy and security are important factors to almost all Usenet users and offering this as a standard just seems like the right thing to do. This doesn’t mean there isn’t room for improvement in this area. For example, in the future you may see competition around the strength of encryption. 512-/1024-bit algorithms are in use in other applications, and may find their way into the Usenet space at some point. The downside, of course, is that better encryption is usually slower, so download speed improvements will probably have to precede such a move.
Download Capacity:
Each vendor has a slightly different approach in this area and we really have no criticism about this category. Most offer unlimited plans that let users download the amount of content that their hearts desire. Block accounts can appeal to others who prefer to pay a onetime payment with a set amount of GB. Metered accounts work well for people who know their downloading habits and want to minimize costs.
Integrated/Paired Search:
One of the issues with Usenet is the need to turn to third-party indexing sites to find content. While some of these sites are extremely helpful, there are increasing moves (on the part of both Usenet providers and newsreader providers) to integrate search into their products, or to offer search capabilities directly from their sites. This often involves some degree of partnering with the indexing sites. Integrated search streamlines the use of Usenet, which is of great practical benefit to users. This may or may not become a primary competitive arena, but when selecting a plan or newsreader, keep an eye out for those that offer this capability.
Download Speed Boosters:
One of the main reasons users turn to Usenet is for the download speeds. As long as the content is on a provider’s server and you are using one of their higher-end Usenet service plans, you can saturate your Internet connection. There has been recent competition regarding the number of connections offered (see below), but for those of us using DSL/cable, the saturation point is often achieved well before we’ve used all of our connections. So, any initiative that will help fit more content through a fixed maximum connection speed is welcome. Most of these speed boosters are based on intelligent compression of routine downloads, such as header information, or on helping bypass ISP throttling. We predict more initiatives regarding download compression to become a competitive area in the next 6-12 months.
Automatic File Reassembly:
Probably the biggest issue with Usenet is that reassembling RAR/PAR/PAR2 content files is a chore. It is simply too complex for the average user, and even having some experience with this from other file sharing technologies, this was an area that required some learning and third-party tools. Some newsreader vendors have been building a reassembly capability into their products, but to date this is not entirely transparent. The first Usenet provider and newsreader that make reassembly of partial files completely transparent will achieve an important competitive edge.
Trends that seem out of whack:
Deep Discounting:
Everyone loves a good deal, but we have concerns about the long-term deep discounting occurring in the Usenet marketplace. In order to increase retention, include SSL encryption, maintain top download speeds, and continue to innovate, Usenet service providers need to reinvest in their businesses. In any industry “enjoying” a downward pricing spiral, there is a risk that vendors will compete themselves right out of business. This is especially true for mid-market vendors trying to keep up with the “big guys”. Maintaining competitive but realistic pricing allows Usenet providers to offer better service and innovative benefits to users while still staying in business. Our list of the Top 10 Providers takes this factor into account – we believe that the providers on that list can weather this period of deep discounts.
Not surprisingly given these price wars, we have already seen some vendors fold. Don’t get us wrong – we like healthy competition within any space but know that for a company to have long term viability it has to continually innovate, and this takes money. Some of the Usenet providers are offering such deep discounting it leads us to question their business models. In the Usenet space we would rather subscribe to a premium service like Giganews or Newshosting even though the pricing may be slightly higher than other providers because we know these firms are continually re-investing in the businesses and plan to stay on the cutting edge. These firms also offer special deals but do not consistently compromise their pricing at the expense of future viability. Our takeaway is that we are totally OK paying a bit more for a plan from a business that we believe will be around for the long haul.
Simultaneous Connections:
This area of competition doesn’t seem so much illogical as it does ahead of its time. The average user today can saturate their Internet service using just 5-15 simultaneous connections. Offering 50-60 connections just seems like the providers are flexing their muscles. Using high-speed DSL we can often saturate using fewer than 20 connections. Yes, more connections will benefit a very small subset of users with high-latency links, but until more users have very high bandwidth Internet connections, or a move to stronger encryption drives up latency across the board, this seems like more of a gee-whiz marketing move.
Summary
In summary we’d like to say that we like the competition and innovation, but want new and additional features to be of true benefit to users. In addition, we are totally willing to pay a bit more for a service that offers competitive features and is also committed to re-investing in the excellence of their business. Our list of the Top 10 Providers reflects the Usenet providers that we believe will be the innovators and still continue to offer the highest levels of service to the Usenet community. And if you’d like to rank the providers using your own criteria, visit our Usenet Provider Comparison table.
What do you think?
Which company is going to launch the next biggest trend? We have our own hunch, but want to hear from you. If you have an opinion, please comment and let us know! And, stop by and visit us at UsenetAdvantage.net.
