AT&T warns of coming clamp-down on iPhone data hogs

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  • Reply 41 of 217
    ifailifail Posts: 463member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by PXT View Post


    This will be the usual case of a few greedy people ruining the deal for the rest of us.



    You can tell them because they always complain that they can't get realtime video streaming 24 hours a day and the next iPhone doesn't have 128GB of storage at the same price.



    This is what people dont understand. I dont approve of AT&T trying to deny apps from using 3G (remember all that FCC crap earlier this year?) but when your constantly tearing through GBs upon GBs of data just in ONE DAY, there needs to be a limit.



    If my roommate was constantly downloading stuff over our wifi connection so much that i cant even use it, guess who the hell is going to pay more for the monthly bill, he is.



    Streaming Pandora, web usage (an hour or two) maybe some google maps is only going to eat a few hundred megs not counting emails. When you start going on streaming binges everyday or are using jailbroken tethering and consumer 10-15gb a day wtf are you smoking, you've been getting a steal all along, its time you man up to pay for what you use.
  • Reply 42 of 217
    s8er01zs8er01z Posts: 144member
    Who needs a data cap? I can't load a webpage in under 3 minutes on their edge network and 3g doesn't exist in 99% of the area here.
  • Reply 43 of 217
    igeniusigenius Posts: 1,240member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by PXT View Post


    This will be the usual case of a few greedy people ruining the deal for the rest of us.




    Those people are taking no more than what they have already bought and paid for. Why do you call them greedy?



    Would you be happy if a bus company dropped you off 100 miles from your destination? If other people wanted your seat, would you be greedy in expecting to get what you paid for?
  • Reply 44 of 217
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by echosonic View Post


    Are you f--king kidding me?



    Don't advertise what YOU CAN'T DELIVER, AT&T. This why you suck, and this is why you will lose 40% or more of your iPhone users the minute they can jump ship to another carrier.



    OMFG.



    "Yes, you can even download this and that, and do things with internets! Just don't do TOO much cool stuff with internets, or we'll lock you down. Everybody only gets a little fun."



    You AT&T morons should have built and should be building a network capable of delivering the content and bandwidth of the 3% to the other 97%, you tools. Sucking down $30 a month just for my f--king bandwidth? Really? REALLY?



    I pay less than that for home internet and can download all f--king day and night, with no restrictions.



    I hate AT&T with every fiber of my being now. This is my back-breaking straw right here.



    Data usage on the AT&T network has increased 5000% since the iPhone was introduced. Yeah, I'm sure you anticipated that too. If the iPhone had landed exclusively on the Verizon network Verizon would have been in the same boat. Get real.
  • Reply 45 of 217
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ifone View Post


    It ios unlimited with an * but nowhere does it say I will be charged more for going over 5GB, nor does it say my service will be disconnected if I reach 5GB within the mth.



    I don't have time to find it right now, but I know I read that they have the right to disconnect your service should they chose to do so. I would highly doubt that would happen the first time you ran over, however, repeat 'offenders' may be disconnected...
  • Reply 46 of 217
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by S8ER01Z View Post


    Who needs a data cap? I can't load a webpage in under 3 minutes on their edge network and 3g doesn't exist in 99% of the area here.



    Just where are you?
  • Reply 47 of 217
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DanielSW View Post


    You pay for what you get. That's natural law. The only thing abusive here is yours and others' childish whining.



    You're on a roll with the name calling and judging others. Way to be the coolest forum frequenter.



    AT&T gives you $30 unlimited data. Now that the devices are capable of hogging bandwidth, AT&T needs to change their contracts when they renew. It's that simple; they, like every other service provider, cannot do unlimited data for everyone at that price point.



    It will be really childish whining when the plans are 500MB per month for $30, and up from there. Then the real crying begins.
  • Reply 48 of 217
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by iGenius View Post


    How is it reasonable for ATT to breach the contract they signed, and insist on new terms, with no payment of damages to the non-breaching party?



    The article doesn't say they plan to do anything like that. You sound like a troll when you repeat that over and over when AT&T hasn't said anything of the sort.



    They plan to offer "incentives" to get data hogs to change their ways. I'll guess that means free stuff, but whatever -- it certainly doesn't mean breaching contracts.
  • Reply 49 of 217
    ifailifail Posts: 463member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by iGenius View Post


    How is it reasonable for ATT to breach the contract they signed, and insist on new terms, with no payment of damages to the non-breaching party?



    Let me be real frank here. There will not be any monetary compensation for AT&T changing contract terms with your notice AND approval (as in, you dont say anything and continue to pay your bill every month = you saying i approve).



    IF AT&T changes anything within the contract of service within the duration of the contract, you are legally able to leave AT&T without incurring any Early Termination Fees due to breach of contract if you do not approve. I know people who have done this with Verizon Wireless.



    If your expecting them to pay you for service you haven't used you are out of mind. That is AT&Ts loss of your business which would hurt them already.
  • Reply 50 of 217
    Sure...jump to Verizon, all you Verizon fanboys, and get whacked with 5GB cap and NO concurrent data/voice.



    AT&T is not going to change any existing contract....they can't.....that's why we signed contracts. If they offer tier pricing, it will be for new contracts.



    Get used to caps....all the jailbreaked iPhones ruined it for the rest of us.
  • Reply 51 of 217
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by echosonic View Post


    I pay less than that for home internet and can download all f--king day and night, with no restrictions.



    I hate AT&T with every fiber of my being now. This is my back-breaking straw right here.



    You know that 1 MB transferred by cable network costs a fraction of 1 MB transferred by mobile network?



    I updated my internet line from 10 to 100 Mbit this summer.

    While waiting in the queue at my local provider the man in front of me cried like mad at the poor employee.



    The reason was that in contrast to the old contracts the new one is limited to 300 GB / month.



    I asked the employee why they did this and he said, that they are building new lines, but at the moment the net transfer rate to the backbone is about 1 GBit.

    If I demand the 100 MBit 24/7 then 1 user takes 10% of the bandwidth.



    Without a cap they would not be able to sell 100 Mbit and guaranty at least 20 Mbit in average. They will increase the limit, when they feel prepared.



    I can take this argumentation having > 50 Mbit in average being far away from the 300 GB limit.



    Hard to compare this with AT&T. I didn't "enjoy" their service yet and I'm glad to have a pretty fast 3G network in my country.



    Investing in their network while asking users to use bandwidth sensible seems not to be the worst strategy to solve their problems in a reasonable time as long as they set caps or limits reasonable and don't try to rip-off loyal customers.
  • Reply 52 of 217
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Some of you need to understand the use of the word unlimited. There are many ways in which it can be used and the fine print of the contract you sign does specify certain limitations to that data usage.



    I have not heard of anyone being throttled by AT&T, having their contract canceled or requested to reduce usage. If they did do that I’d likely be the first to know since I’m a huge abuser of AT&T’s network with my tethered iPhone. If they cancel me oh well, I’m taking that risk by violating my contract, but I think I’m pretty safe.
  • Reply 53 of 217
    ifailifail Posts: 463member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by noexpectations View Post


    Sure...jump to Verizon, all you Verizon fanboys, and get whacked with 5GB cap and NO concurrent data/voice.



    AT&T is not going to change any existing contract....they can't.....that's why we signed contracts. If they offer tier pricing, it will be for new contracts.



    Get used to caps....all the jailbreaked iPhones ruined it for the rest of us.



    5GB is plenty of data on a mobile device unless you seriously sit on your phone 24/7.



    AT&T can easily do what ive been saying and change terms, if you dont like it then leave...but who you gonna take your iPhone to, Tmo or Verizon?



    If i was to bet on it very few people would jump ship to another carrier simply due to the devotion people have for the iPhone.



    Also someone else was saying something about a 5GB cap on the iPhone, that isnt for the iphone its for their mobile network cards the iPhone is unlimited currently.
  • Reply 54 of 217
    @DanielSW - You work for AT&T, yes?





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DanielSW View Post


    Ah, another moron who is clueless about the real world. You must indeed be high.



    Bandwidth hogs cost AT&T dearly for their extravagant over use of the network which denies others normal service in the form of slows, dropped calls, etc.



    AT&T doesn't pay extra for extravagant over-use of their network, other than in losing dissatisfied customers and bad PR that prevents them from bringing in as many new customers as they'd like. However, hardware is hardware. They paid for it at one point and no matter how heavy it is utilized, it doesn't cost them any more than their initial investment to run. You call everyone on here a "moron" or "childish" - why not reinforce your argument with FACTS instead of name-calling? Clearly, you do not understand how networks operate, nor the business model implemented by AT&T.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DanielSW View Post


    You pay for what you get. That's natural law. The only thing abusive here is yours and others' childish whining.



    No, you get what you pay for ACCORDING TO THE TERMS OF YOUR CONTRACT. If the contract states "Unlimited", that means NO LIMIT. These users - the occasional user and the traffic hog alike -- are paying for unlimited bandwidth, something that AT&T could not possibly offer to them all. AT&T made the mistake here - they should not have offered unlimited. If they find a loophole which allows them to modify the contract without breaking it, then it will be a crime. Beware "unlimited" in any kind of deal ... except at the Chinese buffet down the street, perhaps.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DanielSW View Post


    You're the moron--going into you childish tirade over something you clearly don't understand.



    No one could have predicted the astounding success of the iPhone or the impact on AT&T's network. You expect them to magically snap their fingers and the bandwidth is there for all you spoiled brats? No. It takes a huge amount of planning, permitting, construction, equipment logistics, personnel, etc., etc. This all takes time.



    In the mean time the various strains on the bandwidth have to be tempered somehow so that it can be more equitably apportioned.





    Apparently, you are the one who clearly does not understand what is going on here. AT&T enforces their contracts with their customers. If you break the contract, they make you pay. If you break their rules, they make you pay. If you are late paying your bill, they make you pay the bill PLUS a late fee. But, if THEY don't honor the contract, which states UNLIMITED BANDWIDTH for $30/month, then does the customer get to penalize AT&T?



    As for the planning, permitting, etc... clearly AT&T didn't properly plan for offering "Unlimited" bandwidth. The employee who originally suggested it, as well as all of the management that signed off on such a deal, should all be terminated. This is just another in a long list of black eyes for AT&T and is the very reason why I don't own an iPhone until it goes to a respectable cell carrier, like Verizon.



    AT&T is going to have to grin and bear it for their existing customers. Perhaps they can eliminate "Unlimited" for new customers, but those with a 2-year agreement that is still in effect should be grandfathered or allowed out of their contracts. Either way, AT&T loses - they'll be trudging along with a saturated network for up to another 2 years, or they'll lose a significant number of customers, or both.
  • Reply 55 of 217
    WOW! This is really a slap in the face to me as a 2G user who has seen his cell coverage go from 3 bars to 2 bars and now to 1/0 bars in the past year and a half and now in the past month, has seen his EDGE network degrade. So what will AT$T do about that for pricing?! I think I should only pay them half because they're giving me only half the service I had when I signed up!



    I would really hope Apple is listening to their users and just counting down the days until their contract is up with AT$T and will at least add another carrier/choice to the mix!
  • Reply 56 of 217
    igeniusigenius Posts: 1,240member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TenThousandThings View Post


    The article doesn't say they plan to do anything like that. You sound like a troll when you repeat that over and over when AT&T hasn't said anything of the sort.



    They plan to offer "incentives" to get data hogs to change their ways. I'll guess that means free stuff, but whatever -- it certainly doesn't mean breaching contracts.







    My post was in response to folks who imagined it would have been fair for ATT to do exactly what I was objecting to. I realize that ATT has no option to unilaterally change the contract.
  • Reply 57 of 217
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ifail View Post


    Well the iPhone is a data hog, but on other networks like Verizon their data plan is a 5GB cap before they start to investigate you and throttle your speeds.



    AT&T should just have different levels of data for the iPhone.



    $15 - 2.5 GB



    $30 - 5GB



    $50 - True Unlimited



    (emails not included in data usage)



    I think that is fair, if you want all you can eat data then you can pay the full price premium.



    Are those quotes per month? I consider myself a heavy iPhone user, and have used 730 MBs since July. I'd love a 2.5 GB per year for $15 plan. Sign me up!
  • Reply 58 of 217
    wigginwiggin Posts: 2,265member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Bretbenz View Post


    ....unlimited not mean unlimited? Don't offer an unlimited plan and then cry when people use as much as they can. Fix your network AT&T, don't blame your customers for your own problem. We pay you a premium for our phone service and data use, you should give us a premium service, PERIOD.



    You pay a "premium"? ATTs prices are the same or lower than similar plans with Verizon, so where is the "premium" you are paying over competitors prices? And did you really not see this coming?
  • Reply 59 of 217
    rob55rob55 Posts: 1,291member
    I'm averaging 100MB/month myself so this certainly doesn't bother me at all. I think I'd have to agree with the sentiment here that many who are whining about this announcement are probably in that 3% who use a significant amount of their "unlimited" data plans. That's all fine and good, the data plan for the iPhone is advertised as being "unlimited". However, I do feel that those who are illegally tethering their iPhones and using substantial amounts of data or bandwidth in the process should be the ones capped or surcharged.
  • Reply 60 of 217
    igeniusigenius Posts: 1,240member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ifail View Post


    AT&T can easily do what ive been saying and change terms, if you dont like it then leave...but who you gonna take your iPhone to, Tmo or Verizon?




    T Mobile. They are cheaper. Am I correct that the iPhone works on T-Mobile?
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