Data Caps Blatant Money Grab? Comcast’s Latest Announcement Makes It Seem that Way

Comcast implemented a data throttling program in 2008 that was aimed primarily at slowing BitTorrent users. However, the system hasn’t been used much in the past few years, and now, a decade later, it has been disabled altogether. In an announcement on June 11th, Comcast had this to say: 

“As reflected in a June 11, 2018 update to our Xfinity Internet Broadband Disclosures, the congestion management system that was initially deployed in 2008 has been deactivated. As our network technologies and usage of the network continue to evolve, we reserve the right to implement a new congestion-management system if necessary in the performance of reasonable network management and in order to maintain a good broadband Internet access service experience for our customers and will provide updates here as well as other locations if a new system is implemented.” 

What This Means for Data Caps 

While common sense has held for years that companies charging for data overages are just squeezing consumers, this announcement is proof. Straight from the horse’s mouth, as it were, we now have Comcast saying they are perfectly capable of meeting demand. They claim that their data caps are in place in order to promote “fairness,” but that makes little sense. Data isn’t a finite resource, so someone using more isn’t leaving less to the people around them.  

What’s even worse than Comcast’s insistence on data caps is their implementation of them. Users are limited to 1TB of data per month and must pay an extra $10 for every 50GB over that. Otherwise, users can opt to pay an extra $50 per month to have no data cap. However, consumers have no way to verify that the metrics Comcast uses to determine how much data they have used are accurate. In fact, reports of users being charged overages for data they didn’t use aren’t unheard of.  

Worst of all, Comcast maintains that the overages help to pay for system upgrades, not day-to-day traffic. But they already have heavy-traffic users pay more. Higher speeds, which are required for downloading large amounts of content or competitive gaming, are much more expensive than lower bit-rates. This means that those who pay for faster internet will chew through their allotted data faster, meaning they’re getting hit by these higher costs twice when they go over the cap. 

Comcast Could Prove a Dangerous Example Post-Net Neutrality 

Comcast now has little incentive to act ethically, as the regulations that reigned them in are gone. Instead, data throttling and de-prioritization will likely become key aspects of their business model. Why shouldn’t the company charge more for the service they could provide for less? What’s stopping them from unfairly throttling content they don’t approve of? Articles like this one could be flagged and be unable to render on the screen of someone using Comcast for internet.  

This dystopian prediction might sound like hyperbole, but it would be well within Comcast’s power to do so. It would also fit with their previous practices. Then, other ISPs would be likely to follow in their example. Since ISPs are largely monopolies in their areas, consumers would have no recourse. While only time will tell, one thing is clear. Comcast, and other telecom companies, implemented data caps for one reason: to shake down consumers for more money. They’re clearly completely capable of meeting current data demands without the need for such harsh caps. But the caps are good for their bottom lines, so they’re not going anywhere.