Explanation via analogy: imagine that your water utility had to charge the same price regardless of how much water you used. The price for water service would be set at a little above average cost per customer. Now imagine that 30% of water was used by people with pools in their back yard (Netflix users.) The pool owners would have an extremely subsidized service, while everybody else would be paying extra. This is bad for non-pool owners, and also bad for the utility who could be charging pool owners a lot more money.

Now imagine the poorest household in town has to decide if they can afford water service. They would like to purchase a small amount of water for showers and cleaning, but must buy an unlimited supply of water just like everybody else. Some households may choose to go without water to pay for food. This is bad for the poor and bad for the utility who loses out on would-be customers.

Now imagine if the utility proposed a variable rate structure. The businesses that sell products that are consumed along side water, like sprinklers or fish tanks, (Silicon Valley) would fight hard against the utility!