Please, yes.
Limiting how much I can pull at a time (bandwidth) makes sense; limiting how much I can use in total is bullshit. It’s not like it can run out.
It also makes no sense with the bandwidth you’re given.
For example, if you have a 1 Gb/s connection, that’s 0.125 GB/second, which comes out to about 320 TB/month if you fully use that bandwidth. Giving you a pipe that can download 320 TB but then limiting it to, say, 1 TB/month makes no goddamned sense whatsoever. You’re giving people a sports car and telling them they can’t drive over 15 mph.
limiting how much I can use in total is bullshit. It’s not like it can run out.
There isn’t a limit because it “runs out” of data, but because of statistics, and the fact that bandwidth is limited.
Adding data caps reduces the total data volume, which in turn statistically reduces the average bandwidth used by all subscribers together (or whatever subset shares a connection).
Another approach would of course be to reduce the speed of each individual subscriber, but it may well be that subscribers prefer e.g. to be able to watch 10h of 4K video, vs 100h of 1080p video, despite the former being a lower volume of data.
Essentially it comes down to whether you want lots of data, but slowly, or less data but quickly (assuming the same price).
It seems weird to ban consumer choice here.
A related, but different, question is if the consumer truly has a choice in the US. But to me it would make more sense to solve the competition question instead of even further restrict consumer choices for those that do have a choice.
I’m confused where you believe consumers are given choice here.
Data caps are usually scaled up with faster bandwidth, not the other way around as you attempt to define. And that’s simple marketing that attempts to excuse the use of data caps.
Also, data caps are artificial and are literally a money grab under the erroneous guise that data is manufactured and thus has intrinsic value. A congressman literally compared it to manufacturing Oreos — which is complete nonsense.
Also, if what you say is true, then why does AT&T impose no data caps on their fiber network? Clearly this is a marketing issue, not a technical one. And perhaps in the past with the way coaxial internet was engineered, an argument could be made for data caps. The industry has grown up since then, technically speaking, and there is no cause for data caps except to continue to line the pockets of ISPs.
I agree with you that working toward consumers having a choice of ISP is where most efforts should lie, but the FCC can walk and chew gum at the same time and remove anti-consumer practices such as data caps, all the while pushing for more competition at the last mile. They’re not mutually exclusive concepts.
I’m confused where you believe consumers are given choice here.
I’m confused by you being confused. Consumers can pick a subscription with a data cap, or they can pick one without. Maybe you can clarify what you are confused about?
Clearly this is a marketing issue, not a technical one.
Why not both? Marketing can be a great way to work around technical issues, e.g. by steering consumer behaviour in a way that avoids the technical issues.
Also, just because one network has sufficient spare capacity to not steer users to reduce data usage does not mean that every network does that. In fact this is where choice comes in: I can pick a provider which spends more money on the network, resulting in a higher costs, but also higher caps. Or I can pick a provider that spends less on networks, resulting in lower costs, but needing caps to make sure the limited bandwidth is sufficient for all customers.
The industry has grown up since then, technically speaking, and there is no cause for data caps except to line the pockets of ISPs.
You mean except the reason I gave, and you ignored?
Adding data caps reduces the total data volume, which in turn statistically reduces the average bandwidth used by all subscribers together (or whatever subset shares a connection).
I would like to know how you figure that load of horseshit. The average customer never even hits the data cap, so it’s not like it’s just cutting people off so others can get on.
It seems weird to ban consumer choice here.
What choice? Most of the country is stuck with whatever singular entity controls the network in your city. Very few places have any choice about what service they get. And they all have data caps unless you’re a qualified business.
I would like to know how you figure that load of horseshit. The average customer never even hits the data cap, so it’s not like it’s just cutting people off so others can get on.
Well no, of course not. That would upset people. What it does is make people afraid of hitting the limit, which makes them concious of data use and reduces it, even if it does not actually hit the cap.
Very few places have any choice about what service they get.
Most of the country has no choice, so remove choice from those that do, to make it even? Shouldn’t we rather make it even by giving everyone choice? How about instead e.g. forcing ISPs to offer capless plans, while still allowing for capped, but cheaper, plans for those that prefer it?
Comcast would be quite unhappy with me as I’m arguing against monopolies, and for consumer choice.
Consider two companies, A and B.
A offers capless at e.g. $50/mo, and B offers capped at $40/mo.
Now B can no longer offer capped, and they have to raise prices to $55 to invest in better networking. A is cheaper, and pushes B out of the market. Now A is alone, and due to it’s monopoly position raises prices to $60.
End result: Your capless connection now costs $10/mo more, and some people even end up paying $20/mo more for internet.
Yay?
Reducing competition helps the ISPs, not consumers, yet somehow I’m the shill?
I reiterate what I’ve written elsewhere: protect consumers by forcing companies to add choice, instead of forcing them to remove it.
But bandwidth is only limited in points in time, not usage over a month. Makes sense to limit in times of congestion, but not outside that. That is the OP’s point.
When limiting is required, because many people are using the same network, limiting those who have already used the most seems fair.
I understand it could make sense for 4G/5G telecom as transmit towers can be saturated etc if people download terabytes and terabytes every day. But for at home cable? having a cap makes no sense really…
It makes sense if you are a telecom company that refuses to upgrade infrastructure to handle more subscribers.
Exactly this. I work for an ISP that uses radio towers and we don’t have over saturation cause we use proper data shaping during peak hours and backhauls that can handle the load. You know what we do if a tower gers over saturated? We cost balance for immediate releif then build another fucking tower to lighten the load.
It’s been just a week since US telecom regulators announced a formal inquiry into broadband data caps, and the docket is filling up with comments from users who say they shouldn’t have to pay overage charges for using their Internet service. The docket has about 190 comments so far, nearly all from individual broadband customers.
Federal Communications Commission dockets are usually populated with filings from telecom companies, advocacy groups, and other organizations, but some attract comments from individual users of telecom services. The data cap docket probably won’t break any records given that the FCC has fielded many millions of comments on net neutrality, but it currently tops the agency’s list of most active proceedings based on the number of filings in the past 30 days.
The FCC will surely hear from many groups with different views on data caps, but Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel seems particularly keen on factoring consumer sentiment into the data-cap proceeding. When it announced the inquiry last week, Rosenworcel’s office published 600 consumer complaints about data caps that Internet users recently filed.
“During the last year, nearly 3,000 people have gotten so aggravated by data caps on their Internet service that they have reached out to the Federal Communications Commission to register their frustration,” Rosenworcel said last week. “We are listening. Today, we start an inquiry into the state of data caps. We want to shine a light on what they mean for Internet service for consumers across the country.”
I’m suspecting these companies are trying to use Data Caps to “Deter Piracy” without saying as much.
Unfortunately; the reality now is that these Data Caps do not just affect rampant pirates or people who download a lot of things. They are trying to justify an outdated policy that no longer works as intended; and hoping customers won’t notice them taking a bit more profit off the top.
They’ve been more than caught now and the practice must stop or customers will get federal regulators involved
Honestly I don’t mind reasonable data caps. Like I get it, they don’t want someone torrenting 100tb of data in a day. That bogs things down.
But with 4k streaming, downloading 100gb game updates on PS5, and YouTube basically constantly on in the background, I’ll hit the 1TB per month comcast limit in like 2 weeks. And that is just me, nevermind having any roommates at all.
1TB just isn’t enough for the modern Internet.
Like I get it, they don’t want someone torrenting 100tb of data in a day. That bogs things down.
No, that isn’t accurate and isn’t getting it.
All the data caps today are for total cumulative quantity per billing cycle. That is not a reliable method for controlling what actually bogs things down, which is the bandwidth used at any moment (speed).
Limiting bandwidth is also done by most ISPs today, but that’s not what this is asking to change. The data caps are exclusively a way to charge more.
