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Comcast wants to mandate monthly bandwidth caps for all
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The following comments relate to this news article:
article published on 16 May, 2014
According to Comcast executive David Cohen, the U.S.' largest cable and Internet provider is looking to make bandwidth caps mandatory for every customer within the next five years.
Within the time frame, Cohen says he expects the company to move completely to the controversial "usage-based model."
"I would also predict that the vast majority of our customers would never be caught in ... [ read the full article ]
Please read the original article before posting your comments.
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Tarsellis
Member
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23. May 2014 @ 21:48 |
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Originally posted by ivymike:
Time for me to look for a different ISP.....
Good luck with that. Most places they exist they are a state or city inforced duopoly with the phone company that does the same d@mned thing.
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sternrulez
Junior Member
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24. May 2014 @ 09:14 |
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Originally posted by Clam_Up:
Just a little clarification here: bandwidth is a measure of speed, not quantity. All ISPs that I know of have implemented bandwidth caps, measured in bits per second, since forever. That's really nothing new.
The article is really referring to a data cap, or a limit of overall data allowed.
It's a pet peeve of mine. It's kind of like misrepresenting a light year to be a measure of time rather than what it really is: a measure of distance.
You're correct in this, and I've always wondered why people constantly use that misnomer myself...
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sternrulez
Junior Member
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24. May 2014 @ 09:23 |
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OK, so let me get this straight here...(1) you're encouraged by you cell provider to use wifi whenever possible to take the load off their networks, (2) As many others have stated, the volume of streaming and/or digital downloading is only on the rise, not diminishing, and (3) Comca$t recently installed a "separate" band on my modem/router that provides wifi service for guests without you having to give out your passwords.
In summation your honor, what people want or need more than ever now is MORE data, not the fear of going over and being charged for it. So much for my Roku box that I dearly love, and I can't imagine Amazon being happy either since they just rolled out their Fire TV box, console manufacturers won't be pleased either as was previously stated, and even Netflix is going to have a hissy cow for their streaming. I wonder if I can glom off a neighbor's wifi account if I stand on one leg and hold my phone or TV out the window? lol! You SUCK, Comca$t!!
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Senior Member
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24. May 2014 @ 11:46 |
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Originally posted by sternrulez:
Originally posted by Clam_Up:
Just a little clarification here: bandwidth is a measure of speed, not quantity. All ISPs that I know of have implemented bandwidth caps, measured in bits per second, since forever. That's really nothing new.
The article is really referring to a data cap, or a limit of overall data allowed.
It's a pet peeve of mine. It's kind of like misrepresenting a light year to be a measure of time rather than what it really is: a measure of distance.
You're correct in this, and I've always wondered why people constantly use that misnomer myself...
Perhaps the confusion arises because greater bandwidth allows for more data to be transferred per sec?
At the moment 200GB download (my limit) is way more than I use in general per month but I can foresee a time when everything shifts to content "on demand" and it will deliver, in at least 4K images, movies and real-time cloud computed gaming etc. ....... This is assuming, of course, that bandwidth improves from my shitty speed. :)
PS: We in Oz have always put up with data limits, it does get better over time I suppose... Also uploads is unlimited for me but upload speed is even slower.
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sternrulez
Junior Member
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25. May 2014 @ 11:13 |
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Originally posted by Jemborg:
Originally posted by sternrulez:
Originally posted by Clam_Up:
Just a little clarification here: bandwidth is a measure of speed, not quantity. All ISPs that I know of have implemented bandwidth caps, measured in bits per second, since forever. That's really nothing new.
The article is really referring to a data cap, or a limit of overall data allowed.
It's a pet peeve of mine. It's kind of like misrepresenting a light year to be a measure of time rather than what it really is: a measure of distance.
You're correct in this, and I've always wondered why people constantly use that misnomer myself...
Perhaps the confusion arises because greater bandwidth allows for more data to be transferred per sec?
At the moment 200GB download (my limit) is way more than I use in general per month but I can foresee a time when everything shifts to content "on demand" and it will deliver, in at least 4K images, movies and real-time cloud computed gaming etc. ....... This is assuming, of course, that bandwidth improves from my shitty speed. :)
PS: We in Oz have always put up with data limits, it does get better over time I suppose... Also uploads is unlimited for me but upload speed is even slower.
Well, for the moment at least I have no data cap with Comca$t, and haven't for over a year now. However my girlfriend has Service Electric Cablevision, and is burdened under a 250GB cap/mo...that includes both uploading AND downloading BTW. Worse yet, the cap is effective between 3PM and 11PM (not sure about weekends since nothing was mentioned in the material I researched), which of course would be the time everyone get home from work or school and wants to settle down with some TV viewing or gaming.
I found some formulas online to compute streaming (If anyone is interested, just perform a speed test, convert your download results to MB or GB, then multiply that figure by 3600 to obtain your standard-def data usage/hr - HD will easily double or triple that figure.), and 1 hour of standard-def movie or TV show streaming works out to roughly 2GB of data at her speed - which is rather low compared to what I get here.
That may not seem like a lot with a 250GB cap, but realize that is for 1 hour of streaming at standard def. If you go to the other end of the spectrum, you're talking 6GB/hr, and since most movies are 2 hours long that works out to be 12GB/movie...not so small anymore. On a monthly basis, at HD you're looking at about 41 hours of streaming...per MONTH, which is an average of just over 10 hours per WEEK. Not saying that everyone watches 5 movies/wk of course, but consider these points:
1) With the web-exclusive series that are available via portals like Netflix, Amazon, etc. they REQUIRE that they be streamed, obviously.
2) That doesn't take into account at all ANY PC and/or smartphone wifi usage during that month, and
3) I based the #s above solely on an average of her speed test ratings, which as I said is rather poor compared to mine. I just performed a speed test on this wifi-connected laptop, and 1 hour of streaming video for me works out to be a hair under 6.76GB for standard def, so I'm looking at anywhere from roughly 13.5 to 20.28GB for HD. Just because my network is much faster obviously doesn't mean the videos play faster, it just means I have virtually zero chance of frameskipping or sound stuttering...lol! In my case at the maximum amount, I'm looking at about 12 hours of streaming video per month, not counting point 2 above.
Those #s seem incredible even to me, but I got the formulas from a very respected source, and if anyone would like to double check I can certainly find the site again for you.
Finally, I'm really sorry for the long-winded post, but this capping issue is as much of a pet peeve for me as the bandwidth misnomer is for you. I've been messing with numbers for data caps for several years now, even while I was still under their previous data cap which was long before I started streaming with Amazon, Redbox, and of course my beloved Roku. One more point I'd like to make, then I promise I won't waste any more of your time. I'm disabled and work part-time for extra income from home as a tech support assistant for a software company, so even my WORK digs into whatever data cap they may eventually impose. Now you can see the position I'm in, and it's not a good one. Thanks for your time! :)
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MagengarZ
Newbie
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25. May 2014 @ 12:07 |
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Long-winded posts or not, any and all educative input is welcome.
I'm learning new stuff as I read here, so keep it coming!
Lately I've been adjusting my online data back-n-forth habits,
especially trrents and media streaming. I don't watch Netflix,
but I do watch enough YouTube (full-length movies) to raise a concern.
Trrents: I just browse once a month to see what's new, download it only if it's a holy grail I've been after (classic anime) that has been finally English-subtitled after years of hoping to acquire it for my collection.
YouTube and similar vid sites: I use a browser plugin to download a video and watch it offline, then I either save it to disc or dump it if I'm the least interested.
I've experienced roommate shared-internet situations in which I've often had a roomie question me if I was downloading large files, because somehow the bandwidth got capped for a few hours.
So I try to be conscientious about that.
Some folks can be real fiendish about watching stag flicks online;
keep in mind them flicks can also use up bandwidth after spending
hours watching one after another.
I don't see how anyone could be so addicted to it, if I've seen just one stag flick I've seen 'em all-- same plot same ending. lol
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AfterDawn Addict
1 product review
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25. May 2014 @ 16:17 |
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Originally posted by sternrulez:
so even my WORK digs into whatever data cap they may eventually impose.
Remote Desktop really does it...makes streaming HD look small. It chugs and jitters along on connections that happily run netflix at max quality.
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MagengarZ
Newbie
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25. May 2014 @ 16:26 |
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Originally posted by KillerBug:
Originally posted by sternrulez:
so even my WORK digs into whatever data cap they may eventually impose.
Remote Desktop really does it...makes streaming HD look small. It chugs and jitters along on connections that happily run netflix at max quality.
Wow, come to think of it.... jeez, I never thought those online Work-At-Home type telecommute jobs would be affected as well!
And I was thinking about signing up for LiveOps as a part-time job to supplement my income.
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sternrulez
Junior Member
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26. May 2014 @ 11:13 |
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Originally posted by MagengarZ:
Originally posted by KillerBug:
Originally posted by sternrulez:
so even my WORK digs into whatever data cap they may eventually impose.
Remote Desktop really does it...makes streaming HD look small. It chugs and jitters along on connections that happily run netflix at max quality.
Wow, come to think of it.... jeez, I never thought those online Work-At-Home type telecommute jobs would be affected as well!
And I was thinking about signing up for LiveOps as a part-time job to supplement my income.
As I stated previously, this topic has been both a pet peeve and a minor side project of mine for several years, so I was 100% truthful when I said I did my research Magen..lol! :)
I work behind a VPN, which unfortunately drops my speeds to about 1/7 (wired, no less) of my normal throughput (from usually around 7.8MB/sec to about 1.1...basically like working on this old beat-up lappy on wifi...lol), but still after several hours/day of use the GB add up.
Something else I forgot to mention in my prior post: Woe to those who use Vonage or some such for their VoIP needs. I have Comca$t Voice on my Triple Play, but the rest are getting slammed for making phone calls as well....and people wonder why some choose to forsake a landline altogether...
What it basically boils down to is this: Data is rapidly becoming Bitcoin 4.0, but the difference is that you can't mine for data the way you do BCs (and yes I'm aware of the term "data mining", which doesn't pertain to this topic...lol). No matter what you do or where you go, you either MUST use data or can use it to make your life easier, so to paraphrase Frank Herbert: "He who controls the data controls the universe".
Likewise, I firmly believe that cablecos like Comca$t are penalizing you for streaming more varied and better quality content that what we're given. I dropped all of my "premium channels" and am actually saving money by subscribing to streaming services while getting the same (and most of the time better quality) content...and more of it to boot.
I hate to compare this situation to the movie "In Time", where people in the future pay for everyday things with minutes of their life, but I can't help but be reminded of it...that, and Dune of course...lol!
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