Heavy Internet users, like those who stream lots of high-definition video or download video games regularly, should pay more for bandwidth compared to people who don't. That's the opinion of Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam, who said this week that the concept of flat-rate Internet we've grown accustomed to might be headed out the door in the not-too-distant future.
"It's only natural that the heavy users help contribute to the investment to keep the Web healthy," McAdam said during a conference call on Monday, as reported by IDG News Service. "That is the most important concept of net neutrality."
McDowell also brushed aside concerns that Verizon, which rallied against the now-rejected net neutrality rules, would selectively block or throttle bandwidth access.
"We make our money by carrying traffic," he said. "That's how we make dollars. So to view that we're going to be advantaging one over the other really is a lot of histrionics, I think, at this point."
Currently, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) like Verizon and Comcast allow subscribers to stream high-quality video content through applications like Netflix or download 39GB video games without any data cap. This could change, and the indeed, gamers would be affected. But any changes to the status quo remain to be seen.
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