Comcast's Cohen: What I clearly said on Wednesday was taken out of context (or is now inoperative)

Tom Paine

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On Wednesday, Comcast EVP David Cohen told a MoffettNathanson Communications Summit in New York that he expected "usage-based billing" - data caps with overage fees - to reach all Comcast customers (which by that time might be virtually all cable customers) within five years. Comcast is currently testing varying limits in several trials around the nation; In 2012 it suspended its 250 GB data cap.

Specifically, Cohen said, "I would predict that in five years Comcast at least would have a usage-based billing model rolled out across its footprint." See transcript (pdf).

The next day Cohen posted this on the Comcast corporate blog, "CLARIFYING DATA CAPS & PRIORITIZATION", saying that "some of my comments have been picked up out of context and misinterpreted in a number of places." While discussing Comcast's ongoing tests, Cohen adds, "to be clear, we have no plans to announce a new data usage policy." But he offered no absolute denial that such a plan might be implemented at some point in the future.