What? You didn’t know that AT&T will begin throttling that precious unlimited data plan you were grandfathered into last year?
Starting October 1, smartphone customers with unlimited data plans may experience reduced speeds once their usage in a billing cycle reaches the level that puts them among the top 5 percent of heaviest data users. These customers can still use unlimited data and their speeds will be restored with the start of the next billing cycle. Before you are affected, we will provide multiple notices, including a grace period.
In other words, the unlimited data free-for-all we’ve enjoyed with AT&T is over.
This means that once you reach the “top 5 percent” you will not be able to enjoy those streaming audio or movies on your phone because of the data streaming requirements.
What sucks about the announcement is that there is no clear indication as to what amount of data will place you in the top 5%.
To rank among the top 5 percent, you have to use an extraordinary amount of data in a single billing period.
The key takeaway from the announcement is that usage will vary month to month and is based on the consumption of others on the network.
The amount of data usage of our top 5 percent of heaviest users varies from month to month, based on the usage of others and the ever-increasing demand for mobile broadband services.
So if the heavy data users consume less data per month then that would mean that the 5% threshold would be reduced, right?
I guess we’ll find out when AT&T introduces throttling in October and people begin to report back when they are told they are in the 5% group.
What do you think about this announcement? Is it fair that AT&T is throttling your data usage even though you are paying for unlimited data plan?
Source: AT&T Corporate Website.
Image Credit: Android Community
