Mark Weiner is reporting for newyorkupstate [dot] com Spectrum Charter has asked federal regulators to lift some of the conditions set as part of its 2016 merger deal with Timer Warner Cable; eliminating those conditions would allow the company to impose data caps and raise prices next year on some broadband customers. Spectrum’s parent company, Charter Communications, argues that it should no longer be prohibited from limiting the amount of data consumers can use, or charging internet customers based on their data usage. Spectrum Charter, the state of New York’s biggest cable company, also asked the Federal Communications Commission to lift a merger condition that prevents the company from charging streaming video providers such as Netflix to access its system. In a petition filed with the FCC in June, Spectrum Charter requested the regulators lift the merger conditions two years earlier than planned, in May, 2021. U.S. Rep. Anthony Brindisi, of Utica, warned in a letter last week to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai that the changes would be bad for consumers and would reward a company that has failed to live up to the promises of its merger agreement. “No worker should have their internet access crawl to a stop because they hit their data cap, and no family should be put in the position of having to pay their internet service provider more so their 8-year-old can participate in their third-grade class,” Brindisi said. Spectrum denied it was considering data caps on its customers and said it has no plan to do so in the future. Brindisi pointed out to the FCC the company has a poor track record of living up to its promises in New York. Read the full story at newyorkupstate [dot] com.