Data is a valuable thing, and it looks like traditional cable companies are looking to leverage it as hard as they can for a much money as they can get. Comcast is the most notable offender of this practice, but it looks like another big company has decided to follow in their footsteps, Cox Cable. Cox Cable has officially placed a 1TB monthly data cap as well as $10 charges for each additional 50 GBs you go over. The overage fees are not applicable to every market, as Cox is gradually integrating them into markets around the country.
Ohio, Florida, and Georgia were the first markets to get the data caps back in October, but that has now expanded to include Arkansas, Connecticut, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, and Idaho. The data cap encompasses all download speeds from 5 Mbps to 300 Mbps, though Fiber customers are currently not charged for going over.
This is because Cox doesn't track the data usage for Fiber customers since this particular service is only available in select areas of the country. Supposedly there is a 2TB limit for Fiber customers, but Cox has not been enforcing it according to Ars Technica.
A Cox rep told Ars Technica:
"Our meter does not currently track the data usage of Gigablast customers, therefore we do not currently charge Gigablast customers who exceed usage allowances in the markets where we have implemented use-based billing."
Netflix has been one of the more outspoken critics against these kinds of data caps since it could directly impact their business as well. Considering all of the different devices that people own nowadays that all consume data (smartphones, gaming consoles, laptops, desktops, Smart TVs), data is more valuable than it has ever been.
Gamers especially have a huge stake in data caps in regards to how often developers update their games post launch, with some updates topping 10 GBs in a single download. We will have to see how the data market unfolds, but if this is the future, it's not looking so good.
Source: [Ars Technica]
