New Service Promises Unlimited Cloud Storage for $10 A Month

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Tim Higgins

A new cloud storage service has emerged from stealth mode to offer "infinite" storage for only $10 a month.

Bitcasa uses patented technology that acts somewhat like BitTorrent in reverse to break files into encrypted pieces before uploading them to its cloud storage infrastructure.

Bitcasa integrates tightly with your client OS, so there are no special folders or drag-and-dropping required. Instead, Bitcasa "intelligently" caches files to your hard drive for fast access and offline use and performs all file prep and transfer in the background.

TechCrunch’s article (CrunchFund is a Bitcasa investor) says that Bitcasa stores only encrypted pieces of files with no means to decrypt them. So it could not respond to subpoenas demanding file access. But since Bitcasa has to identify file contents in order to employ its "patented de-duplication algorithms", the service could not be held blameless for storing pirated content.

The low $10 / month pricing is made possible by storing only unique data, identified via the aforementioned "patented de-duplication algorithms". But de-duplication has long been employed by many other cloud storage companies such as Backblaze. And while de-duplication is effective for mass-marketed print, music and video content, it can’t save much space when applied against typical business data.

So whether Bitcasa can maintain the $10 / month all-you-can-eat pricing once it opens its cloud for regular business will depend on the limitations it imposes on file sizes and the mix of files stored.

Bitcasa is in limited access beta for now and free if you can get an account.

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