Comcast recently reported its busiest week of internet activity, largely due to the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and the popularity of Thursday Night Football streams. The game’s release on October 25 led to a surge in data traffic, with Call of Duty accounting for around 19% of Comcast’s network usage during the week.
Although Comcast didn’t provide exact data on the number of users downloading the game or the total data volume, the game itself is known for its significant file size. The PlayStation version of Black Ops 6 takes up approximately 84.4GB, while the PC version reaches around 102GB. Players who download additional content, including Modern Warfare II and III, along with various content packs, could reach a total of 300GB. This large download requirement is not unusual for Call of Duty, which has become known for its substantial data demands in recent years.
Comcast’s high-traffic announcement highlights the strain that large downloads can place on its 1.2TB monthly data cap, which affects most customers in the United States. This cap, initially paused during the COVID-19 pandemic, was reintroduced across most of the country, despite some pushback from customers. With these data limits in place, players who download the full 300GB package could use nearly a quarter of their monthly limit in a single session, leaving little room for other data-heavy activities.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has acknowledged that internet providers have the technical capacity to operate without imposing such data limits and is currently investigating how these caps affect consumers. However, it remains uncertain whether the FCC can implement any changes to these policies.
For many, including households with active internet use, staying under the 1.2TB limit can be challenging. With regular internet usage, downloading a game as large as Call of Duty could quickly push customers close to or over the data limit, leading to potential overage fees or reduced speeds. For context, households without major game downloads, like one reporting 800GB of usage in a month, could easily exceed the limit with just a few large game downloads.
With streaming and gaming becoming essential parts of digital life, Comcast’s record-breaking internet traffic showcases how popular content, especially large-scale downloads, can impact users under data limitations.
