Cox Communications has upped the usage limit to all of its broadband plans to 1 terabyte or more, keeping with an industry strategy that appears to center on avoiding regulatory scrutiny.
The 1 TB usage limit applies to every Cox data tier — from the 5 Mbps “Starter” package to the 300 Mbps “Ultimate.” The 1 Gbps “Gigablast” service has a cap of 2 TB that remains intact.
“Yes, it’s pretty straightforward. We are raising data plans in all our markets to 1 TB in nearly all packages,” said Cox spokesman Todd Smith.
RELATED: Comcast expands deployment of 1 TB data cap
Cox’s move follows similar terabyte usage strategies deployed by Comcast and AT&T. And it’s marketing language is pretty similar, too: “Approximately 99% of Cox customers are currently on a data plan that more than adequately meets their monthly household needs,” the company says on a page announcing the move.
RELATED: Comcast bumps data caps to 1 terabyte
Notably, as part of its regulatory regime tied to its purchases of Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks, Charter Communications was banned from imposing caps for seven years. This was interpreted by telecom industry watchers as signaling a possible crackdown on usage limits by the FCC.
The FCC has said that it is interested in investigating usage-cap and zero-rating policies employed by ISPs, but it has set no timetable for that examination.
As for Cox’s move, not every tier is necessarily getting more head room.
Cox issued across-the-board usage allotment increases just last spring. For example, the Ultimate tier — which had a 150 Mbps speed rating at the time — had its cap increased to 2 TB.