globeandmail.com: Heavy web downloaders face broadband fees
This infuriates me. The lack of choices in the Canadian market. The lack of a regulatory body that works for the people, not the communications industry.
It’s not the downloading cap, it’s that these companies get to choose the Internet we Canadians get to experience, and it’s not even a matter of “against the law”. Downloading for personal use is still legal in Canada, uploading is another story.
I’ve already had iTunes purchased tracks and podcast downloads broken due to Rogers inability to put in their version of traffic shaping.
Posted in
Tumble at March 28th, 2008.
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Posted in
Tumble at December 14th, 2007.
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Hotspot Wireless Internet Access allows users to connect to the Internet from various public locations. It is a collaboration by Canada’s 4 (really 3, Rogers bought Fido) mobile providers. Accessing the system requires a mobile phone with one of the carriers for billing purposes.
Bell, Telus and Fido (Rogers) offer an hourly rate, Bell $7.50, Telus $10, and Fido at $8. Rogers offers $0.15/minute which works out to $9 for an hour. For greater usage, Bell, Telus and Fido offer daily/24 hour rates of $13, $15 and $15 respectively. Rogers continues at $0.15/minute, for $216.
Now in their defense Rogers does offer a $4/month subscription, for 90 minutes, and $0.10/minute after. But, this is a very weak defense, it doesn’t take long for Rogers to become more expensive than Bell, Telus and themselves (Fido).
Rogers also offers monthly subscription for $24/month which nets the user 600 minutes and a per minute rate of $0.10. However both Bell and Telus offer an unlimited month for $25 subscription.
Telus and Fido both go a step further and offer a pay per use week of $25, and a month for $40. Neither of these requiring a monthly subscription.
One key point to remember here, other than the billing system, the 3 (4) providers are using the same infrastructure, with the same costs.
Hotspot Rates:
Posted in
Technology at November 25th, 2007.
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