Maclean Magazine Scorns Canadians
Appearently Maclean believes that Canadian consumers are being unfair about usage based billing, and that we all want free access to the internet.
This Rogers Communications owned publication thinks that because they believe average users aledgely only use 16 gigabites per month that anyone going over this amount should be subjected to higher fees, just because some 2% of users download “hundreds of gigs worth” per month.
Is this what they call “Fair” ? And where did they get that 16 gigabite per month figure ?
My average use is at about 40 gigs per month at the moment because of Youtube and i’m sure Netflix users have a similar rate. I am not an “average user” ?
It’s obvious that legitimate online television and film content streaming have resulted in a hike in average use and that 16 gig figure will not cut it.
There are already hundreds of internet ready devices, including televisions and blu-ray players, that enable families to view film and television from the internet. And these devices are getting more and more affordable each day so the “average” use will likely surpass 50 or 60 gigs per month soon, if it hasn’t already.
Cloud computing will also drive some of these transfers up, as more and more people use this new technology from their home, so usage based billing is no response.
Netflix Now In Canada
Netflix is now online in Canada and offering unlimited film and television downloads at $7.99 per month.
Unlike their American counterpart, they are not currently offering rentals by mail. But Canadians can now stream videos to their desktop and laptop computers, Wii, PS3 and mobile devices like the iPad and iPhone.
The company promises to add the XBox 360 and internet compatible Blu-ray players and televisions shortly to their service. And the service will be available on the Apple TV device soon as well in Canada.
BTW, those wishing to try the service can do so for one month, for free. Details can be found on the Canadian Netflix site.