Why didn't the Data Doctor prescribe Unlimited Online Backup?

I just had to comment on a video that I saw on CNN.com (The transcript can be found on the Data Doctors website). The answer given by "the Data Doctor" is a little strange – the guy loves online backup but he doesn't like unlimited backup plans like Carbonite. He seems to think that they are hobbled in some way. This doesn't make an ounce of sense and it would have been good for the "doctors" to check their facts before making such pronouncements. The assertion that vendors with unlimited backup somehow throttle or limit backup speed or capacity in some way is just plain wrong. I know it's not the case with Carbonite, and I suspect that our competitors, like Mozy, similarly do not encumber their unlimited offers. It's amazing how these rumors and "common wisdoms" spread on the Internet and how infrequently experts actually bother to check the facts.

I love these guys for promoting online backup, but I wish they would have reported unlimited backup for the incredible deal that it actually is. I wish they would have said, "With disk storage costs dropping like a stone, vendors like Carbonite are able to offer truly unlimited capacity for a fixed price. Yeah, they probably lose money on a small percentage of their users, but by making it unlimited they keep the user from having to make a lot of compromises and choices."


Dave
CEO, Carbonite

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April 20. 2009 12:10

Ken Colburn - The Data Doctors on CNN.com

UPDATE on Online backup perspective:

When the story originally aired, we did in fact research the complaints that we saw from many folks about the "all you can eat" backup services. We even had a discussion with a technical resource at Carbonite to ask about the complaints.

Much has changed since the airing of this segment and Carbonite has done a good job of improving their support system and educating users on managing their expectations of exactly how online backup works.

In fact, when Data Doctors was searching for a national partner for online backup to include in its Quality Care computer healthcare coverage program, we chose Carbonite based on our research of the various vendors that fit our needs.

Technology changes on a rapid basis and listening to your customers is critical in improving your services and Carbonite has shown that they do listen, which is why we chose them as our online backup partners!

Ken Colburn - The Data Doctors on CNN.com

April 22. 2009 17:00

David Friend

Ken: Thanks for the nice post, and delighted that you picked Carbonite. You're right that there have been a lot of advances in the last year -- a Mac version, searchable restore, remote web access, multiple document versions, and so forth. Plus a rock-solid back end that has absorbed 100%+ annual growth without a hickup. We now have over 25 billion files backed up, and we get more than 100 million new files every day. More importantly, we've restore over 2 billion files in the last year. We're always looking for ways to make Carbonite simpler.

Again, thanks for the endorsement, and please let me know how it's going.

Dave Friend, CEO
Carbonite, Inc.
Task Subject
www.carbonite.com

David Friend

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