[Wikipedia-l] Re: URGENT: blocking open proxies

[Jimmy Wales]

Timwi wrote:
> Then make them care. Hack something into MediaWiki that allows us to
> display a pre-set message to non-logged-in users with certain IPs or
> within certain IP ranges. Use that to encourage users who are forced
> behind an open proxy to switch provider, implicitly mumbling something
> about their management. Keep telling the providers that we're actively
> doing this to their users. When they start losing customers, they will
> start caring.

In some cases they might, but don't assume a free market exists
everywhere.  In many cases the *reason* the provider doesn't care is
that they have a *monopoly* and customers have no choice about it.  Talk
to Waerth in Thailand about this problem, he's quite eloquent in
explaining it.

--Jimbo