Why is Hosted Disk Space So Expensive?

Posted by Cliff on Thursday May 22, 2003 @10:59AM from the are-backups-and-bandwidth-really-THAT-expensive dept.

dhclab49 asks: "Recently, I wrote a data-driven web application for a customer, and when it came time for them to select a hosting company, what I found was that most hosting companies charge a LOT for disk space. Most of them have accounts for $10-$30 per month, a bit more if you add in a database account. However, they almost all limit you to around 250MB of disk space, with extra space costing like $1/month per additional MB of storage. The app I wrote manages the customer's workflow and is meant to allow them to generate PDF documents and store them online, so I really need a few gigs. In an era where hard disks cost about a buck a gig and are getting cheaper by the day, how can hosting companies charge $1000 per gigabyte per YEAR?! And are there any alternatives out there for hosting a data-driven website at a reliable datacenter with a few GB of space for under $500/mo?"

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Colocate! by psyconaut · 2003-05-22 11:16 · Score: 1, Redundant

Colocate your own hardware...when you buy "hosting", you're also paying for admins, backups, lease payments on hardware, etc.

Also, one size doesn't fit all...a lot of these hosting packages are setup for the average "sell 'em cheap, stack 'em high" customer...and you're a bit of an exception to that.

-psy