iiNet [Australia]: Popularity Of Zero-rated Netflix Costs us too Much

Few months ago the title was "iiNet [Australia] Offers Zero Rated Netflix" [here]. Was that a good idea?

David Ramli reports to The Sydney Morning Herald that "iiNet chief executive David Buckingham [pictured] says the massive popularity of internet services like Netflix means current broadband plans will not be sustainable under the national broadband network unless the company building it drastically slashes prices .. Internet service providers like Singtel-Optus and iiNet are not charging customers for the data used by Netflix as both a marketing tool and a way to prevent bill shock for users.

But the service consumes a huge amount of data because it offers constant streaming of high-definition videos to several devices simultaneously – an issue some claim would make it unaffordable under the NBN's current pricing arrangements.

..The main complaint for telcos is a fee charged by NBN called the connectivity virtual circuit charge (CVC), which costs $17.50 per 1 megabit per second. iiNet chief technology officer Mark Dioguardi in April warned that users could be forced to pay a "Netflix tax" of $26 a month extra for moderate HD streaming, and $60 a month for the ability to watch occasional 4K streams". 

 

See "Netflix popularity requires NBN price rethink, says iiNet boss David Buckingham" - here.