Are Broadband Caps Inevitable?

Craig Moffett, cable and telecom analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., says Time Warner Cable's setback with capping broadband usage is only temporary: "Look, there's a real argument for some form of consumption-based billing, and it's going to happen. Time Warner got the pricing wrong, it got the PR wrong, but this is not some kind of stealth price increase. They've been clear -- they don't want to discourage the use of the [broadband] product, but they have be able to manage the increased use of bandwidth that goes with Web-based video." Karl Bode responds: "Keep in mind that Moffett also thinks network upgrades are unnecessary, has declared the wire-
less industry is collapsing, and enjoys slamming Verizon's investment in fiber whenever possible. There's no real debate that metered billing would be great for investors and carriers, but the fact remains these new pricing models may not be good for consumers -- a contingent Moffett and other investors could care less about."
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