Time Warner Cable Inc. announced for Thursday the start of a metered Internet access trial that will charge its customers an extra $1 per gigabyte, once the monthly data allowed will be exceeded.

The new available prices will offer consumers a range of options depending on their needs, starting at $29.95 a month for a slower service, with 768 kilobits per second at a 5 gigabyte limit and topping off with a $54.90 per month offer, with 15 megabits per second and a 40 gigabyte limit.

The trial will be implemented in Beaumont, Texas and it will gather information on the quantities of uploaded and downloaded material of Warner’s subscribers in order to make the proper adjustments, if needed.

According to Time Warner Cable's executive vice president of advanced technology, Kevin Leddy who talked with the Associated Press, the metered Internet access solution is considered the best way of dealing with the highly uneven Internet usage registered by the company.

"We think it's the fairest way to finance the needed investment in the infrastructure," Leddy said, as quoted by the AP.

The new set of rules will have little to do with the consumers who normally stick to Web surfing and e-mail, as a gigabyte accounts for about 3,000 Web pages or 15,000 text e-mails. On the other hand, the ones depending on the Internet for downloading movies and TV shows might find the company’s new policy rather upsetting.

The company’s Web site will offer a free feature that will enable users to check their data consumption and know at all times their current state.