As Florida Caps Go Live, Comcast Still Refuses to Admit They Cap As we were the very first to report last month, Comcast has not only expanded its usage caps into parts of Florida starting today, they're now charging users in capped regions a $30 premium if they want to avoid usage caps altogether. In current trial markets, users face a 300 GB monthly cap, after which users have to pay $10 for each additional 50 GB of usage.

Comcast's usage-cap trials have slowly but surely expanded since first being announced back in 2012 . Currently, the trials are underway in Huntsville; Mobile; Tucson; Atlanta; Augusta; Savannah; Central Kentucky; Maine; Jackson; Tupelo; Knoxville; Memphis; Nashville; Tennessee; and Charleston. Fort Lauderdale, the Florida Keys, and Miami markets go live starting today. In the past, Comcast has refused to admit these usage caps are usage caps, instead insisting that the press call them "data thresholds." Amusingly, Comcast is still busy "correcting" journalists, again telling Fortune this week that they don't cap usage: quote: Charlie Douglas, a Comcast spokesman, argues that its wireless-style plans aren’t a cap. A true cap, he argues, was what Comcast implemented in 2008 when it told users that if they used more than 250 gigabytes per month they would be first warned and then cut off from service. That plan ceased in May 2012. Comcast insists that its offering since then is better described as a “data usage plan.” “We don’t call it a cap,” Douglas says. “We call it a data plan just like wireless companies have data plans." Whatever Comcast wants to call it, there's no real-technical reason to impose caps on well-managed networks, and as many engineers argue, monthly caps was about congestion, U.S. broadband users pay enough for flat-rate broadband to make up for all necessary network upgrades -- and then some.So if it's not really about managing network load or financial necessity, why is Comcast imposing data caps? Comcast is solely interested in "fairness," claims Comcast spokesman Charlie Douglas: quote: Why would a company that has plenty of capacity on its network need a data plan? It’s not a matter of capacity, Douglas argues, but fairness. “Ten percent of our customers are consuming half of all of the data that runs on our network each month,” Douglas says. “So part of the rationale for all of these trials is this principle of fairness. Those who want to use more pay more, and those who want to use less pay less." Of course fairness has never really been the motivation of cable companies hungrily eyeing usage caps. As digital voice services are replaced by cell phones and TV services are replaced by Internet video, Comcast's primary concern is ensuring that they keep revenues fat, and what better way to accomplish this than by imposing usage caps friendly-neighborhood data plans? Granted if we want to be truly technically accurate we should just call this what it is: another massive Comcast rate hike. Whatever Comcast wants to call it, there's no real-technical reason to impose caps on well-managed networks, and as many engineers argue, monthly caps don't really work even when there is congestion. Even the cable industry has admitted that its lust for usage caps isn't about congestion. Even if itabout congestion, U.S. broadband users pay enough for flat-rate broadband to make up for all necessary network upgrades -- and then some.So if it's not really about managing network load or financial necessity, why is Comcast imposing data caps? Comcast is solely interested in "fairness," claims Comcast spokesman Charlie Douglas:Of course fairness has never really been the motivation of cable companies hungrily eyeing usage caps. As digital voice services are replaced by cell phones and TV services are replaced by Internet video, Comcast's primary concern is ensuring that they keep revenues fat, and what better way to accomplish this than by imposingfriendly-neighborhood data plans? Granted if we want to be truly technically accurate we should just call this what it is: another massive Comcast rate hike.







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Most recommended from 87 comments



TechyDad

Premium Member

join:2001-07-13

USA 16 recommendations TechyDad Premium Member Targeting Internet Video



A normal Netflix stream takes about 1GB per hour for SD and 3GB per hour for HD. A 300GB a month cap equals 300 hours of SD Netflix and 100 hours of HD Netflix. (Obviously, this is only if you used your Internet for nothing but Netflix which isn't realistic but to keep things simple we'll ignore other Internet uses.)



Given an average of 30 days per month, this is 10 hours per day for SD Netflix. This doesn't seem too bad at first, but if multiple people watch shows at the same time, you're draining your hours faster. (e.g. If the kids are watching a show in one room while your spouse watches in another room and you watch a show in a third room, you're using 3 hours for every hour that passes.)



For HD shows, a Comcast customer would only get 3.33 hours of HD Netflix per day. Use any more than that and you could be charged $10 for every additional 16.7 hours of HD Netflix. This comes out to paying $10 to get another half hour of HD Netflix every day.



In short, the cable ISPs are doing this so that they can say "see how expensive Internet video is" and steer people towards "cheaper" cable TV. The reality is that they are making it expensive by engaging in monopolistic behaviors and adding fees if you use competitors' services. Caps like this (even if the company tries calling them "data thresholds", they are still caps), only serve one purpose: To prevent people from cutting the cord and watching Internet video instead of the cable ISP's TV service.A normal Netflix stream takes about 1GB per hour for SD and 3GB per hour for HD. A 300GB a month cap equals 300 hours of SD Netflix and 100 hours of HD Netflix. (Obviously, this is only if you used your Internet for nothing but Netflix which isn't realistic but to keep things simple we'll ignore other Internet uses.)Given an average of 30 days per month, this is 10 hours per day for SD Netflix. This doesn't seem too bad at first, but if multiple people watch shows at the same time, you're draining your hours faster. (e.g. If the kids are watching a show in one room while your spouse watches in another room and you watch a show in a third room, you're using 3 hours for every hour that passes.)For HD shows, a Comcast customer would only get 3.33 hours of HD Netflix per day. Use any more than that and you could be charged $10 for every additional 16.7 hours of HD Netflix. This comes out to paying $10 to get another half hour of HD Netflix every day.In short, the cable ISPs are doing this so that they can say "see how expensive Internet video is" and steer people towards "cheaper" cable TV. The reality is that they are making it expensive by engaging in monopolistic behaviors and adding fees if you use competitors' services.

Snakeoil

Ignore Button. The coward's feature.

Premium Member

join:2000-08-05

Mentor, OH 12 recommendations Snakeoil Premium Member Yet another reason to bust last mile. Add another reason as to why the last mile must be busted in relation to cable companies. Their lack of competition [to clarify: from within their own industry] allows them to hold users hostage.

Doakills

@comcast.net 9 recommendations Doakills Anon Fairness? They want to put in caps but they don't want to adjust there price. I'm getting ready to move into my new house and my internet choices are Centurylink, which plainly sucks in my area and only can get the 20mbps plan? Then there's the devil, Comcast, that offers internet only plans that I can't even touch separately for no more 60-70$ a month by itself, or you package TV and pain 10$ more dollars a month.. Its completely ridiculous there expectation of a fair price...

Xioden

Premium Member

join:2008-06-10

Monticello, NY 8 recommendations Xioden Premium Member They don't really tell their customers either. When I signed up about 2 months ago, I went in full well knowing about the caps. There was no mention of it at the store from the sales person. There is no mention of it in the 5 page list of services and fees that was sent along with the 10 page "Information about your service" mailing. Add to that a usage meter that was absent from the account page until part way through the second month of service, it's entirely possible someone gets locked into a contract without knowing the existence of said caps.

camper

just visiting this planet

Premium Member

join:2010-03-21

Bethel, CT 7 recommendations camper Premium Member The distraction of what to call the caps is not the issue...

Comcast would love it if the conversation about the caps focuses only upon what to call them.



But the real issue is that the caps are being instituted to protect Comcast's cable business from Internet-delivered video services.



The caps are Comcast acting in an anti-competitive manner, using the essential facility of its network to reduce the competition Comcast faces.



Comcast has admitted that the caps have nothing to do with network congestion.

ieolus

Support The Clecs

join:2001-06-19

Danbury, CT Netgear R6400

4 recommendations ieolus Member If they were really interested in fairness... If they were really interested in fairness, they would price their service as if they didn't have monopoly power over the last-mile for broadband.



Please don't bother replying to say there is competition from wireless (haha), telecom (hahahahaha, 6mb down if lucky?), or an over-builder/Google Fiber/Fios (we should all be so lucky!).

Noah Vail

Oh God please no.

Premium Member

join:2004-12-10

SouthAmerica 4 recommendations Noah Vail Premium Member Fairlessness I uploaded 1.5TB of linux distros in Sept.



Everyone who felt this was unfair to them, please let me know.