BRISTOL, Tenn. – Bristol Tennessee Essential Services customers who download lots of online movies – particularly films in high definition – might have to start paying more each month for their passion, BTES CEO Mike Browder said Wednesday.
Browder told Power Board members that the power and fiber-optic company, which has about 8,000 Internet customers, might need to charge more each month from those who download massive numbers of online movies. Such films can eat up huge amounts of bytes and downloading time, a rising cost that Browder said companies like BTES must absorb when they buy Internet access from providers – and then make available to their customers.
“Look, 90 percent or more of our customers use the Internet at a level equal to what they pay for it each month,” Browder said. “But we’re trying to figure out how to handle the people who spend all day downloading HD movies. They’re costing us a whole lot more than they’re paying us. We’ve got people paying $29 [a month] and using $100 worth of service.”
Browder said BTES would rather have heavy movie downloaders pay more than begin limiting how much content customers can access each month, as some Internet providers do.
“We don’t want to limit people from getting the services they want, we just want them to pay for what they use,” Browder said. “If they want to download lots of movies, no problem, they can have all of that. We can definitely do that for them. Just pay a price that reflects that ability.”
Currently, BTES customers pay $29.95 to $59.95 each month for Internet service, depending on various options in each package.
Browder said he had no specific figures yet on how many BTES customers are big downloaders, but said the company will begin to research it.
“It may not be a huge segment,” he said. “But there’s clearly enough customers that are eating our lunch on this.”
Browder also said it is too early to calculate how much more should be paid each month.
Power Board members expressed no opposition to the possibility of charging more.
Board Chairman Pat Hickie suggested that while most customers use the Internet in short bursts, massive movie downloaders are similar to a homeowner with “a faucet that keeps on running” water.
In other activity Wednesday, the board approved a $90.6 million operational budget for BTES for the 2011 fiscal year.
rbrown@bristolnews.com | (276) 645-2512
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