Comcast’s decision to set limits on its customers’ broadband usage caused quite a hype in these past few days, with numerous comments, praising or criticizing the decision. The company explained that the measure is mandatory in order to ensure a good Internet service for all of its clients.

Starting with October 1, Comcast announced that 250 Giga Bytes per month will be the maximum data usage accepted for its clients. If a user exceeds the limit, the company will send a notice and if it will happen twice, the access will be suspended.
Jennifer Khoury, Comcast’ spokeswoman, explained that the limit is about 100 times more than what the average subscriber uses and that the measure will only affect less than 1 percent of the company’s user base.

Responses surfaced almost immediately, with many companies and individuals expressing their thoughts in news papers and blog pages.

Om Malik, the founder of the technology Web site GigaOm, referred to the cap as “the end of the Internet as we know it.”

DSLReports.com, the well known consumer broadband information Web site, called it “a significant shift in the U.S. broadband market that won’t be reversible.”

Mr. Derek Turner, the research director for the nonpartisan media policy group Free Press, considers the move at this point worrying but not critical: “As media companies put content online, consumers can bypass the cable companies and get their content directly from the Internet,” he said. “A 250 gigabyte cap may seem very high — and it is for today’s Internet use. But it’s essentially the equivalent of four hours of HD television a day.”