Netflix will stop asking ISPs to exempt its videos from data caps

Netflix says it regrets striking a deal that exempted its videos from data caps imposed by an Internet service provider and will avoid such arrangements in the future. Netflix has criticized data caps on fixed broadband for years and said that when they are applied, they should be applied equally to all content. But in Australia, where data cap exemption deals are common, the company negotiated with iiNet to exempt Netflix video from the ISPs' caps. One month later, Netflix said in its quarterly letter to shareholders that it was a mistake, writing, "Data caps inhibit Internet innovation and are bad for consumers. In Australia, we recently sought to protect our new members from data caps by participating in ISP programs that, while common in Australia, effectively condone discrimination among video services (some capped, some not). We should have avoided that and will avoid it going forward. Fortunately, most fixed-line ISPs are raising or eliminating data caps in line with our belief that ISPs should provide great video for all services in a market and let consumers do the choosing."