Why are Faxes Low Speed?

Rizzer asks: "Something I've never been able to understand is why fax machines have remained behind in the dark ages, with a maximum speed of 14.4 kbs. Modems have soared up to 28...33...now even 56kbs. Of course 56kbs would not ordinarily work fax-to-fax, but even an increase to 28kbs would give you twice the speed (and therefore half the cost on long-distance calls). Certainly there are ISDN faxes, but that's not for everyone. So what's keeping a new fax standard from being designed and implemented? In a more cynical moment one might think the telephone companies are deliberately keeping faxes slow to maintain their income stream..." Conspiracy theories aside. Why are faxes slower than regular data modems?

Rizzer "