Telstra set to re-impose broadband limits - News - Communications

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This story was printed from ZDNet Australia.
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Telstra set to re-impose broadband limits

By David Hellaby, Special to ZDNet Australia
October 17, 2001
URL: http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/Telstra-set-to-re-impose-broadband-limits/0,130061791,120261223,00.htm

Telstra may be about to reimpose its controversial 3GB monthly download limit on BigPond cable customers and charge for excess downloads.

However, users may be offered a choice of higher download plans that could cost up to $300 a month.

That is more than four times higher than the current plan which originally offered unlimited downloads within an 'acceptable usage' policy.

The corporation today confirmed it will make an announcement -before Christmas" on the results of its review of its broadband service but has declined to comment on the possibility of subscribers being offered new download plans.

Earlier this year Big Pond caused an uproar among broadband user groups by announcing that from October it would impose a 3GB download limit on a previously unlimited download plan and charge about 20 cents per megabyte for excess downloads.

Now Australian broadband user site, Whirlpool , claims to have received leaked information from within Telstra indicating BigPond Broadband may be about to introduce new volume based plans.

Whirlpool says the 3GB plan will remain at the same price or possibly less, while higher volume plans with a greater monthly download allowance will cost up to $300 per month.

Whirlpool claims BigPond is intent on charging about 20 cents a megabyte for excess usage.

BigPond corporate affairs manager Stuart Gray said an announcement on the 3GB limit proposal would be made before Christmas.

However, he would not comment on whether BigPond would announce new pricing plans at the same time it made its decision on the 3GB limit public.

BigPond introduced usage meters in July that allowed subscribers to see their monthly download volume and in some cases they were as high as 60GB, which would have resulted in excess usage charges of thousands of dollars a month.

The corporation later told subscribers it would not go ahead with the limit in October and would continue to review the situation. But in an apparent contradiction BigPond told customers that while it was not imposing a download limit anyone who downloaded more than 3GB would be subject to 'unspecified' sanction under the acceptable use policy.

Telstra admitted at the time that online gamers would use more than 3GB a month but said they could use Telstra's Wireplay site free from the data limit.