Does Cox Charge for Streaming?
Binge-watching movies, and TV shows, and even listening to music, and other related content is a norm for many individuals. It may sound obvious but due to the constant growth of such platforms as Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and others, more and more people turn to the Internet for entertainment. This leads to a very important question – is one of the top internet service providers in the United States, Cox, asking for additional fees for streaming?
The Short Answer
In other words, the answer to whether Cox has additional charges for using the internet for streaming videos, music, or other content is no. Streaming is similar to normal Internet usage since it also consumes data. Therefore, when using the internet to stream, there will be no further charges from Cox as long as you don’t go beyond the data that comes with your internet plan.
Streaming and Data Usage
When you watch episodes online or even a particular movie, you are indeed consuming data from the internet connection. The amount of data that is utilized in streaming ranges from basic elements such as the quality of the video in terms of resolution, the duration of the content, and others. For example:
- Watching streaming videos in standard definition requires about 1GB of data every hour
- Widescreen streaming takes up to 2GB to 4GB of data per hour.
- Watching 4K ultra HD content on streaming can take approximately 7GB per hour.
Thus, if you binge multiple shows in a month, particularly those in HD or 4K, your streaming activity will consume a substantial amount of data and leave you with little to no data cap for the month.
The Cox Internet Data Plans and Data Usage Charges
Cox offers several residential internet packages with different data limits:
- Starter (30 Mbps) – The data limit for this particular broadband package is 300GB.
- StraightUp Internet (50 Mbps) – monthly data transfer allowance of 500GB
- Ultimate (300 Mbps) – 1TB data usage, **Not mentioned for new customers**
- Gigablast (940 Mbps) - 1TB data allowance
If you exceed your package's data plan limit during your billing period, Cox will automatically charge you for overage usage, depending on your region:
- $10 per every 50GB over and above the initial 200GB, or $200 monthly maximum.
Thus while Cox doesn’t directly penalize you for streaming as such, streaming a lot of high-definition content may lead to excessive use of your plan and attract extraneous charges.
This post shows how to avoid Cox overage fees.
Here are some tips to keep your data usage reasonable and avoid overage charges from Cox:
1. Monitor your data usage
This can be done daily, weekly, or monthly to avoid going over the allowed usage. Cox has to track data usage through the Cox account online or the Cox app.
2. Stream at standard definition
Watching standard definition video instead of high definition reduces the amount of usage because SD streams at only 3/4 bitrate of HD videos.
3. Limit bandwidth-intensive activities
File downloads, video and voice calls, playing games, and using a VPN often lead to quick data consumption.
4. Smart television devices should be connected through Ethernet.
When streaming at 4K, ensure that you are using a hard wire connection and avoid using a Wi-Fi connection as it is intermittent.
5. Upgrade your internet plan
If you frequently use your card and come close to your limit, switch up to the next level of card that has a higher credit limit.
6. Duplicate unlimited data (with a charge)
Only, some Cox regions are providing an add-on option of unlimited data, which is usually available at an additional cost of $50 per month.
Is Cox throttling my connection?: This is a matter of concern that many users have raised about their internet service provider Cox.
However, reading this article you may wonder - do internet providers deliberately ‘slow down’ your connection if you stream a great deal and consume a lot of data? The answer with Cox is no, Cox does not slow your internet connection or reduce its speed at any time. Various third-party investigations have confirmed that Cox offers unaltered broadband speeds always including when the usage is high at times.
This way, you can stream with confidence, knowing that Cox will not compromise the streaming quality or speeds. The only thing to beware of is the amount of data used each month and the charges incurred thereafter.
Weighing Your Options
Streaming, on the other hand, is only on the rise and its influence is expanding year after year. Analyze your Internet activity to see whether your current Cox data plan offers enough wiggle room or if it would be financially preferable to upgrade to an unlimited data plan. Cox also has the feature of allowing customers to move from one package to another depending on their needs at a certain point in time in a given month.
Decide what level of streaming you expect – in hours per week, the quality of the stream, and the number of streams at the same time. And think about adding on-demand movies, in addition to streaming movies via the Cox Video on Demand library which contains more than 30,000 titles accessible through your set-top-box.
With this Cox internet package, you have the assurance of enjoying your favorite movies, television shows, music, and many other services without being charged an arm and a leg for exceeding your plan limit. By strictly adhering to the limit, one can stream as much as he or she desires to!
Ready to upgrade your internet experience? Call us now at +1 844-349-7575 to explore the best Cox Internet plans for your needs!