American Cable Association Wants Bandwidth Caps

[Niels Bohr 72]

The American Cable Association said that, like it or not, metered bandwidth Internet pricing is coming, and will be a necessity.

s displeased as internet users are (as in those who actually use the internet) about bandwidth caps, it seems that cable companies on the whole want consumption-based billing policies. Cable executives who met for the American Cable Association's (ACA) annual summit expressed feelings that metered internet billing would be a part of the business future.

According to Broadcasting & Cable, ACA President Matt Polka said that metered pricing will be a necessity going forward for cable companies as they become broadband companies.

Polka gave that example of his heating bill in Pittsburgh, where he would love to pay the same flat rate all year-round for heating, but instead must pay more during the winter months. With all the network expansion and new internet services such as Netflix streaming, Polka said that cable companies won’t be able to provide service for just $40 per month.

Patrick Knorr, general manager of Sunflower Broadband, which has had bandwidth-based billing for four years now, said that a grandmother who just wants to read e-mail should not have to subsidize the college kid who downloads HD movies to watch later.

Knorr added that metered billing is the only way to manage infrastructure and that charging a flat rate "is not a sustainable business model." Sunflower Broadband currently offers an entry-level 3 GB service tier for $27.95 per month (without video bundle discount). Those who crave the top-level service can get 50 GB for $59.95 (without video bundle discount) per month. Those who go over their quota will be billed at $2.00 per GB, though customers can buy more bandwidth in advance in 15 GB blocks for $10 each.

Sunflower Broadband tries to put its bandwidth caps into perspective using data from more than two years ago. As quoted from its service site: In April 2007, 98.9% of users had less than 40 GBs of bandwidth usage, 86.98% of used less than 10 GBs, 49.46% of used less than 1 GBs of bandwidth usage per month.

Knorr went on to say that, unlike satellite, broadcast, and cable, the internet is not a particularly efficient way to deliver high-res video.

We’re personally of the opinion that the internet is a very efficient way of delivering all sorts of data, video or not. What do you think? Do ISPs have to charge for bandwidth to sustain a business model, or are cable companies just trying to throttle back customers to keep them paying for traditional TV services?

Source : Tom's Guide US

[one...two...tree 2,762]

I'm torn on this because I can see both sides of the issue.

[pedroh 21]

####...

capping internet blows..

[pedroh 21]

i dont know why he says internet is not efficient for video.. T-mobile in Yurop delivers HD TV through broadband+internet.. and they don't charge eleventy million dollars like these fukcers wanna do

[one...two...tree 2,762]

####...

capping internet blows..

I'm trying to read up and catch up on all the arguments. From what I gather, companies are concerned about piracy.

i dont know why he says internet is not efficient for video.. T-mobile in Yurop delivers HD TV through broadband+internet.. and they don't charge eleventy million dollars like these fukcers wanna do

That's what I was wondering - how is broadband working in Europe? Do they have any caps?

[pedroh 21]

####...

capping internet blows..

I'm trying to read up and catch up on all the arguments. From what I gather, companies are concerned about piracy.

i dont know why he says internet is not efficient for video.. T-mobile in Yurop delivers HD TV through broadband+internet.. and they don't charge eleventy million dollars like these fukcers wanna do

That's what I was wondering - how is broadband working in Europe? Do they have any caps?

they don't wanna invest in infrastructure.. plus, they are already capping speeds to a lotta people.. they are the fukcin pirates

[pedroh 21]

well from what I saw.. broadband comes to a modem/router, 1 jack goes to the voip phone, and 1 goes to the hd/dvr box.. which delivers hd and DT channels... so the argument that internet is not efficient for hi-res is bologney

[Nagishkaw 510]

Control, control, control.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Control, control, control.

Free enterprise X3

[Ban Hammer 13,619]

####...

capping internet blows..

maybe i should tell you some horror stories about hughesnet. now they blow!

[pedroh 21]

####...

capping internet blows..

maybe i should tell you some horror stories about hughesnet. now they blow!

oh, i've heard

[Niels Bohr 72]

Cable has a separate frequency band for internet, and video. Video doesn't send packets. Video and internet are two different arguments. We can drop the video.

The problem lies with the shared bandwidth, and the routing algorithm for the packets that are used in the switching fabric of the network.

[Mark&Steph 0]

This is one of those days that I'm glad for my DSL.

[Heracles 417]

I think Steven might be impressed with this. The Australian government has been battling with the incumbent telco there for years now. So rather than have one company build their own restrictive FTTH network, they have just announced that they (the government) will build a $43 billion dollar FTTH network and then sell it off in a few years. Much like a road, by the government building it, this will allow multiple companies to use (lease) the network.

I am sure Matt85 will disagree with this but as one of my economics teachers once said, a private monopoly is just as unproductive as a public monopoly. In this scenario, the government is able to build a high speed network and lease it at cost price for use by a range of other companies. Overcoming an incumbent like a single cable company or single telephone company naturally monopoly under usual circumstances.

Until FIOS is rolled out in my street I am stuck with comcast; and they know that. Hence why their prices have not decreased a single dollar in years.

Edited May 2, 2009 by Constellation

[natty bumppo 297]

I'm torn on this because I can see both sides of the issue.

yea ... we know you go both ways