Running and Passing.

This past week Comcast rolled out their bandwidth meter here in Portland, Oregon. Home cable internet plans are now subject to a 250 GB / month limit and Comcast currently offers no options to purchase additional bandwidth.  The first violation of this cap results in a phone call from the friendly ‘Customer Security Assurance’ people warning of said limit. Customers who violate the cap a 2nd time within six months of the first violation will have their service terminated for one year. I direct interested parties to Comcast’s Updated Acceptable Use Policy.

I’m actually curious as to my bandwitch consumption. Ever since my father purchased a Time Warner Ohio cable connection in the mid/late 1990′s, I have used considerable bandwidth with little regard.  I have never been malicious, but have made no attempt to curb my usage. Many European and Asian ISPs offer cable services with upload/download speeds considerably higher than those commonly found in the United States and virtually all of these foreign services remain free of any bandwidth cap.

I’m pretty opposed to the idea of a bandwidth meter and believe Comcast is creating a false scarcity. I am currently on 6 month promotion and receive a discounted rate, but will not hesitate to change providers should the cap become a hindrance.

** In other news, I’d like to direct visitors to the System7.org computer and network security site. Run by a knowledge friend of mine, System 7 speaks on relevant security concerns and offers some insightful suggestions. He has recently been posting on the privacy policy of search engines.