If you live in one of the last states where Comcast has not released its data limits, you are experiencing another relief: the company announced that it is now postponing the launch for some time in 2022 (via Ars Technica) The 1.2 TB data limits, which incur extra charges if users exceed the limits, were originally scheduled to be implemented in March, but have been postponed until July. Comcast did not say specifically when the launch would take place next year.
These limits will be familiar if you don’t live in the Northeast region of Comcast, which consists of Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Vermont, West Virginia and the District of Columbia, (along with parts of North Carolina and Ohio). Most Comcast customers have dealt with them for years and that will not change. Even though the new launch is delayed, Comcast said Ars Technica that its customers in 27 other states would not be getting rid of limits and overuse rates.
The ISP’s reasoning for the delay, according to the announcement, is that the company realizes that “the data plan was new for [its] customers in the Northeast ”, and wanted to“ provide[e] with more time to familiarize themselves with the new plan. ”This is not a courtesy that the company extended to other states when it expanded data limits for them (except for an extra“ free ”month or two). But to be fair, there was also no global pandemic going on during these implementations.
However, it seems obvious that Comcast need implement data limits to provide service – otherwise, it would not have been able to delay the launch, nor would it have been able to keep the region’s data limit free for years. It is unclear whether the company will use the additional delay to reconsider its planned implementation, despite the plan’s lack of popularity with customers and legislators.