Look, Comcast, we get it: you think we’re stupid. We’ve seen your bottomless contempt for the consumer time and time again. But come on, guys. At least try to disguise it a little bit.
We bring this up because Comcast has a 250GB data cap per month on its service, which applies to Netflix and means you can watch 20 movies in HD a month before you risk having your account summarily terminated. No, seriously, Comcast will just shut you off. No warning, no appeal.
Unless, of course, you happen to be streaming video from Comcast’s new service on the XBox 360! That doesn’t apply to bandwidth caps on your Comcast service at all!
Leaving aside the fact that this is blatantly anti-competitive and deliberately designed to target a business Comcast hates, there’s this little insulting gem on their FAQ:
Q: Will XFINITY On Demand content a customer views via the Xbox 360 go against their bandwidth cap?
A: No, since the content is being delivered over our private IP network and not the public Internet, it does not count against a customer’s bandwidth cap. XFINITYTV.com and the XFINITY TV app stream content over the public Internet and count toward the customer’s bandwidth cap.
So, let’s get this straight: it’s the same data. It goes over the same cables. It arrives and is transmitted with the same modem…aaaaaaaaand you want us to believe that somehow, some way, “the public Internet” needs to be capped but with your own services, your customers can run wild.
In other words, you want to be AOL. …OK, good luck with that. Also enjoy the now-inevitable visit from federal authorities.
(Image via dmuth on Flickr)
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I am pretty sure this breaks a few laws. At least I hope it does. Also Netflix should sue those mother fucks.
This is great- literally just had a conversation about this the other day. Cable companies as we know them have officially begun to dig their graves. This just speeds up the process. People WILL get their content, when they feel like getting it, and for how ever long they want it for. Can’t watch one HD movie a day? HAH. The more caps and limits you put on it, the more people will turn to services that let them exercise viewing freedom. I bet Apple’s new television set will be a HUGE catalyst of this based on the rumors… apparently they’ve made direct deals with networks. SEE YA!
Since it is Comcast going through a Comcast network chances are they have gigantic media rebroadcasters at each node hosting the files meaning none of the local xbox traffic traffic travels across the various private “public” networks Comcast has deals with for low cost data travel.
So chances are it isn’t the same data going over the same cables. It is pretty much what happen with Netflix earlier except Comcast is smarter. Netflix wanted to send a lot more data across comcast’s public network than what their fair use contract stated, Comcast pretty much wanted Netflix to cover the cost of upgrading everything to support the demands and yet Comcast was the bad guy there.
IT’S STILL THE SAME PHYSICAL CABLE. It is data, going into a cable, that you pay Comcast to provide to you. Comcast has no reason to cap data except to try and control how their customers use the Internet. That is, at best, unethical and at worst, illegal.