• by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, June 3, 2011

In a speech that bodes ominously for cord-cutters, Time Warner Cable head Glenn Britt said this week that the company plans to refocus its efforts from marketing triple-play TV-phone-broadband service to selling broadband-only subscriptions.

"Broadband is becoming more and more central to people's lives," he reportedly said at a Sanford C. Bernstein investor conference. "People are telling us that if they were down to their last dollar, they'd drop broadband last."

Britt specifically talked about selling broadband subscriptions to people who currently receive video by satellite. In fact, however, there's only so much room for Time Warner to grow by adding new broadband customers -- especially since the company already offers the fastest service in many markets. After that, the company obviously hopes to recoup the money it stands to lose from cord-cutters is by charging more for broadband connections.

Indeed, Britt said he believed that consumption-based billing was in the cards for the future, although he didn't specify when.

Of course, Time Warner has made no secret of its desire to impose pay-per-byte pricing. Two years ago, the company caused a stir when it announced a plan to expand tests of consumption-based billing to four new markets. The plan at the time was to offer tiered service ranging from $15 a month for 1 GB to $150 a month -- the approximate cost of the company's triple-play service -- for unlimited bandwidth.

Public pressure, including criticism by lawmakers, spurred Time Warner to back away from that plan at the time. But no law -- either at the time or now -- appears to prevent broadband providers from charging whatever they wish. Given the lack of competition in the market -- many people have a choice of only two broadband providers -- consumers may be left with little realistic alternatives than to agree to whatever pricing scheme the broadband companies impose.