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Please ban data caps, Internet users tell FCC
(arstechnica.com)
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this post was submitted on 24 Oct 2024
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Technology
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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.
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.
Weird way to frame it! Is this post sponsored by Comcast?
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.