Usage-based internet fees and online gaming

That's right, Time Warner is testing the possibility of charging internet users for service based on individual bandwidth consumption. And listen to this:

The company believes the billing system will impact only heavy users, who account for around 5 percent of all customers but typically use more than half of the total network bandwidth, according to a company spokesman.

Do online gamers fall into that 5 percent?

If most internet users would save money from this new model and like it, and online gamers do fall into that small percentage, then online gaming's runaway growth could be slowed to crawl. Not only MMOs, but online console services could suffer.

I tend to avoid predictions of doom and gloom. Disasters do happen, but they're rare. But is there good reason to be afraid with this? It seems developers and gamers alike should keep an eye on this one.


Sorry about the long hiatus. I've just felt like I have nothing to say lately. Hopefully, I'll be posting regularly again soon.