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ISPs consider bandwidth surcharges
Three of the largest U.S. Internet service providers are
threatening to restrict their most active subscribers' online
activity, companies say. Time Warner Cable, Comcast and AT&T
are considering charging those who use their services more
than the average user, The New York Times reported Sunday.
Time Warner began an "Internet metering" trial this month in
Beaumont, Texas, asking customers to select a monthly plan and
pay surcharges when they exceed their bandwidth limit.
For its part, Comcast said it may slow down the connections
of the heaviest users, so-called bandwidth hogs. The newspaper
reported AT&T said limits on heavy use were inevitable and that
it was considering pricing based on use. "Based on current
trends, total bandwidth in the AT&T network will increase by
four times over the next three years," the company said in a
statement. "Average customers are way below the caps," said
Kevin Leddy, executive vice president for advanced technology
at Time Warner Cable. "These caps give them years' worth of
growth before they'd ever pay any surcharges."
Three of the largest U.S. Internet service providers are
threatening to restrict their most active subscribers' online
activity, companies say. Time Warner Cable, Comcast and AT&T
are considering charging those who use their services more
than the average user, The New York Times reported Sunday.
Time Warner began an "Internet metering" trial this month in
Beaumont, Texas, asking customers to select a monthly plan and
pay surcharges when they exceed their bandwidth limit.
For its part, Comcast said it may slow down the connections
of the heaviest users, so-called bandwidth hogs. The newspaper
reported AT&T said limits on heavy use were inevitable and that
it was considering pricing based on use. "Based on current
trends, total bandwidth in the AT&T network will increase by
four times over the next three years," the company said in a
statement. "Average customers are way below the caps," said
Kevin Leddy, executive vice president for advanced technology
at Time Warner Cable. "These caps give them years' worth of
growth before they'd ever pay any surcharges."
