Re: [apple-iphone] AT&T changes its throttling techniques: 3GB for HSPA+ (iPhone) or 5GB for LT...

I am so glad to see AT&T lay out the rules in plain English. The top 5% was
very ambiguous and could change from month to month.

On Thu, Mar 1, 2012 at 11:48 AM, Bill Boulware <bill.boulware@gmail.com>wrote:

> **
>
>
> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/9To5Mac-MacAllDay/~3/TYYICr79PDw/
>
> Sent to you by Bill Boulware via Google Reader: AT&T changes its
> throttling techniques: 3GB for HSPA+ (iPhone) or 5GB for LTE gets you
> on the naughty list via 9to5Mac by Seth Weintraub on 3/1/12
>
> .
>
> AT&T is now getting ahold of their throttling plans by laying out the
> numbers which will get users put into the "reduced data scenario".
> Instead of the sliding scale "top 5% of users" which often was people
> under 2GB, they now have a hard maximum of 3GB for HSPA users like
> those with iPhones and 5GB for their new LTE offerings. Users will
> receive a warning the first time but won't get a notice thereafter.
>
> Additionally, we've heard that the actual throttling is a lot less
> severe as pointed out by some Howard Forums users.
>
> The move follows outcry from customers and even some customer lawsuit
> victories.
>
> There is a new site and FAQ for those interested.
>
> AT&T statement follows:
>
>
> With mobile data usage continuing to skyrocket and the availability of
> spectrum scarce, AT&T, like other wireless companies, manages its
> network in the most fair way possible so that we can provide the best
> possible mobile broadband experience for all our customers.
>
> How we're managing the network only affects a small minority of the
> heaviest smartphone data users still on unlimited plans. Put another
> way, this does not impact more than 95 percent of our smartphone
> customers.
>
> .
>
> Our unlimited plan customers have told us they want more clarity around
> how the program works and what they can expect. Here's what customers
> need to know:
>
> .
>
> · Customers with a 3G or 4G smartphone – who also still have our
> unlimited data plan – will see speeds reduced if they use 3GB
> (gigabytes) of data or more in a billing cycle. Speeds will return to
> normal at the start of the next billing cycle. For context, less than 5
> percent of smartphone customers use more than 3GB per month.
> · For customers with a 4G LTE smartphone – who also still have our
> unlimited data plan – data speeds will be reduced if usage is 5GB
> (gigabytes) or more in a billing cycle. Speeds will return to normal at
> the start of the next billing cycle.
>
> Customers will get a text message from us before experiencing a change
> in speed.
>
> Even with reduced data speeds, these customers will still be able to
> email and surf the web, and continue to use an unlimited amount of data
> each month.
>
> Not impacted by this program, launched last year, are customers on our
> tiered data plans.
>
> The reason reduced speeds only apply to unlimited smartphone customers
> is because their data usage is significantly higher than those on
> tiered plans. For example, in January, the top 5 percent of our
> unlimited data plan customers used an average of over 50 percent more
> data than the top 5 percent of customers on tiered plans.
>
> Because spectrum is limited and data usage continues to soar, we manage
> our network this way to be as fair as possible and so we can provide
> the best possible mobile broadband experience to everyone.
>
> We encourage all of our customers to use Wi-Fi whenever possible –
> especially when watching video, which is the most data-intensive
> activity.
>
> That's because data activity over Wi-Fi does not count against the
> threshold for unlimited customers that triggers reduced data speeds or
> against customers' tiered data plans. Customers can find out more at
> www.att.com/datainfo
>
>
>
>

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

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