Consumers Union is the latest group to call out Time Warner on their “metered broadband” plans.
The organization, which publishes Consumer Reports magazine and recently purchased the consumerist.com website, used Time Warner’s own shareholder reports to throw some more cold water on the “fire” that is “capped broadband”.
You can read their report here, but the gist of it is thus:
• TWC’s revenues from broadband during the first three months of this year rose 11% percent over the first quarter of 2008, climbing from $994 million to $1.1 billion.
• At the same time, TWC’s costs to provide broadband service to its customers dropped 18%, from $40 million to $33 million. That dramatic drop in costs came even though its number of subscribers grew from 7.9 million to 8.6 million.
• Overall, TWC’s profits were down for the quarter, falling from $242 million to $164 million. But the company says the drop in profits was due mostly to restructuring costs rung up when it was spun off in March from its parent company, Time Warner.
Once again, I just can’t believe that TWC would take the whole “woe is us” approach to metered broadband, especially in the day and age of the Knowledgeable Internet Consumer. These days, a large company like Time Warner just can’t outright lie to people… but they tried anyway.
Remember… I’m still watching you like a hawk, Time Warner!
