Telecom will axe its "Big Time" internet plan which lets customers download as much as they are able for $69.95 a month.
Tens of thousands of customers signed up to the plan after it was launched in July, but complaints have grown about poor performance.
Telecom homes services director Ralph Brayham blamed a minority of customers who had their foot to the floor downloading thousands of movies a month, each generating "terabytes" of traffic.
Being the only internet provider offering uncapped internet plans, it had ended up with "all the vampires", he said.
Telecom reserved the right to manage Big Time traffic to de-prioritise the sharing of music and movies through "peer-to-peer" file sharing sites.
That should have ensured there was enough capacity for all Big Time customers to get a good service surfing the web and accessing email. Mr Brayham said that was easy in the beginning, but some customers began using software to stay a step ahead of tools Telecom used to ration file sharing.
"It leads to a poor customer experience if we keep playing chicken and egg with these guys. It has become very difficult for us to manage the traffic in a way that provides the right customer experience as well as being an economically viable product for us."
Telecom will stop signing up Big Time customers today and will contact people who are on the plan over the next two months, to move them on to other plans.
Telecom offers one costing $69.95 a month with a 20 gigabyte traffic cap which Mr Brayham said would suit many Big Time customers.
The other option was its "Pro" plan costing $89.95 a month that has a 40 gigabyte traffic cap.
Charges for extra data on the Pro plan have been cut from $20 to $2 a gigabyte to make it more attractive for heavy users. All the plans cost $10 less if customers have their toll calls with Telecom.
When Telecom launched Big Time it said it had done so to provide certainty to customers such as families and flatters sharing a broadband connection, who could find data caps hard to manage. Mr Brayham said he was disappointed Big Time had not worked out.
Telecommunications Users Association chief executive Ernie Newman said he sympathised with Telecom but was also disappointed.
"If you are the only restaurant in town with an `all you can eat' menu, you are going to attract the big eaters."
Mr Newman said it showed the Government was on the right track with its proposed investment in fibre-optic cable "so we can look forward to a time when bandwidth ceases to be a constraint".
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What has happened to the Big Time broadband plan?
We're sorry, Telecom's Big Time broadband plan was removed from our broadband line-up on the 20th of May 2010.
Although we would have liked to continue providing this option for customers, there are a number of challenges to delivering a plan with no set monthly data allowance. The management of traffic on the plan has become particularly difficult, meaning Big Time has been removed from sale.
I'm a Big Time customer - when will I find out more?
We are conscious we have a number of customers who are on the Big Time plan. You will receive a letter from us in the coming months with your options and giving you advanced notice before we need to move you to another broadband plan.
If you would like to make a change of plan today, or disconnect your broadband service, we recommend you call us on 0800 22 55 98 to discuss your options. Otherwise you can remain on the Big Time plan until you receive our letter explaining your options.
그동안 유용하게 쓰이던 무제한 인터넷이 없어지네요.... 그것도 갑좌기.... 현제 빅타임을 쓰고 계시는분들 이제부턴 고작 20GB 쓰시고 인터넷 속도도 갑좌기 느려지는 불편함을.... 느끼시게 될것 같습니다.... 뉴질에 광케이블은 언제쯤 깔릴까요......
We're sorry, Telecom's Big Time broadband plan was removed from our broadband line-up on the 20th of May 2010.
Although we would have liked to continue providing this option for customers, there are a number of challenges to delivering a plan with no set monthly data allowance. The management of traffic on the plan has become particularly difficult, meaning Big Time has been removed from sale.
I'm a Big Time customer - when will I find out more?
We are conscious we have a number of customers who are on the Big Time plan. You will receive a letter from us in the coming months with your options and giving you advanced notice before we need to move you to another broadband plan.
If you would like to make a change of plan today, or disconnect your broadband service, we recommend you call us on 0800 22 55 98 to discuss your options. Otherwise you can remain on the Big Time plan until you receive our letter explaining your options.