I'm sure you're right that prices are pretty low overall, vs the high rates of overage fees, but I wanted to point out that the same people who can't tell bits from bits per second and dollars from cents probably aren't using "an order of magnitude" in the full scientific sense, but rather in the "a whole lot more" sense.
I'd be interested in what an independent investigation would reveal.
Considering that almost everyone has a stake (i.e. as either a user or a provider), I'd imagine that an independent investigation could only be done by a government entity forcing disclosure of this information by a private company.
Actually, does anyone know of a government funded ISP that makes this information public?
I'd be interested in what an independent investigation would reveal.