> You wouldn't call it efficient if a government came in and decided
That is what happens for every natural resource. Your gov establishes rules for land and ground water just like that. Actually, even for IP and patents...
I don't see how you get from "gov regulated process of resource allocation" to "gov enforced monopolies". Yes, we should care about the value generated to consumers. The theory is that companies use exactly this money from consumers to get the spectrum.
> There are alternative solutions - like opening up wide swaths of spectrum to smarter devices that are able to share that spectrum broadly.
That only works with strong regulation (I'd guess you don't want gov involved in details?) or in situations were cooperation will always win out. Otherwise you'd usually end up with with some kind of Tragedy of the commons / Prisoner's dilemma like situation. Like every neighbor here upping their WLAN power...
I didn't mean to suggest that no regulation was the superior option - just that the market isn't efficient because it can't be operated efficiently. The limitations on distribution of spectrum makes it an inherently inefficient market. Unlike with another natural resource like say, tree pulp or oil, I can't just import some cell service if I don't like your prices, that's why I call this a government enforced monopoly. If government decide to distribute an immovable resource in a way unfriendly to competition it results in a broken market.
Patents and copyrights are an intentional breaking of this market to encourage innovation - explicitly with the intention of creating a temporary monopoly. One can hope that government doesn't go out with the goal of creating a monopoly on cell service.
That is what happens for every natural resource. Your gov establishes rules for land and ground water just like that. Actually, even for IP and patents...
I don't see how you get from "gov regulated process of resource allocation" to "gov enforced monopolies". Yes, we should care about the value generated to consumers. The theory is that companies use exactly this money from consumers to get the spectrum.
> There are alternative solutions - like opening up wide swaths of spectrum to smarter devices that are able to share that spectrum broadly.
That only works with strong regulation (I'd guess you don't want gov involved in details?) or in situations were cooperation will always win out. Otherwise you'd usually end up with with some kind of Tragedy of the commons / Prisoner's dilemma like situation. Like every neighbor here upping their WLAN power...