Comcast Launches A Storage Cloud
"Secure Backup & Share" is the cable/Internet/entertainment giant's latest service.
It's for customers of Comcast's high-speed Internet service, who will be able to "retrieve and share their personal digital media from any Web-enabled or wireless device." I.e., it's a big ol' cloud.
Some might find it creepy to give their ISP access to their most important files, but with about 140,000 hard drives crashing weekly in the U.S., according to stats cited by Comcast, there's a lot of need for backup. Files also can be lost, the company points out, through human error or lost or stolen computers. Though some might argue that if you are careless enough to lose a computer, that's your own damn problem.
Fact of the matter is, no matter what cloud you store your data in, you're trusting someone else with it."As customers create and consume more digital media content, the need for online backup and storage increases significantly. Backup devices, like an external hard drive, can be lost, stolen or damaged in a fire and even if you put your backup device in a safe-deposit box, you probably aren’t updating it regularly," Cathy Avgiris, senior vice president and general manager of communications and data services for Comcast, said in a statement.
Comcast's high-speed Internet customers get 2 GB of storage
free. Those who need more can pay $4.99 a month or $49.99 annually for
50 GB of storage or $9.99 monthly/$99.99 annually for 200 GB of
storage. A personalized web site gives customers a platform from which
to share the data with others.
Right now, it's only for Windows users, but it's promised soon for Mac. No word on Linux. System requirements are:
