Forget YouTube, Australia's fraud-band makes online video a pipe dream

Adam Turner
Friday, 23 February 2007 21:23

Opinion and Analysis

How do BigPond customers on 200MB per month download a 1.5GB movie from BigPond Movies? Easy, BigPond doesn't count downloads from BigPond Movies towards the download limits of BigPond customers. With its minuscule download limits BigPond has created an artificial walled garden - you don't need fences when you cut people off at the knees so they can't go anywhere else. What chance do other music and movie download services have?

BigPond Movies competitor, fledgling startup ReelTime, is reportedly in danger of going under any day now - yet what chance did it have of survival in a market where many people just don't have the data allowance to download movies unless it's from BigPond?

BigPond is internet for dummies an no-one in their right mind would sign up with BigPond if they had an alternative. So why do people pay good money for this junk? Because they're stupid and they don't know any better. If the government wants to fix broadband in this country, it should start by protecting people against ISPs selling such crap.

At the moment BigPond is flogging its rip-off entry plans half price for 12 months, hoping to lock people into two year plans before competitors' ADSL2+ services reach their suburb. Telstra's market domination and massive advertising budget ensures plenty of idiots sign up with BigPond before they realise how much or a rip-off the service is compared to almost any other provider.

Even BigPond realises its plans are a disgrace. I know several people who were stupid enough to sign up for the entry level plans without asking for my advice first. When their two year plans expired recently, they took my advice and rang BigPond to tell them they were leaving because the plans were so bad. BigPond offered them a free nine-month upgrade to a 10GB p/m plan - anything to stop them moving to another ISP and discovering how bad BigPond really is. Had they not of complained they'd still be on 400MB.  

Fraud-band is keeping Australia in the internet dark ages. If ReelTime dies, the blood is on Telstra's hands. The death of ReelTime would also be a signal to the rest of the world that Australia is a broadband backwater not worth investing in. A range of video download services have sprung up around the world over the last few months. The XBox 360 has one, the PlayStation 3 is getting one and the Apple TV video on demand service is going to shake things up later this year. Don't expect to see any of these in Australia anytime soon. Not when BigPond keeps Australians on a drip feed.