"The change may be another response to legal actions by both the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission. AT&T is still fighting a $100 million fine from the FCC, which accused it of using misleading statements about its unlimited plans. The FTC is suing for similar reasons, and if successful, some of the damages should be returned to affected AT&T customers."
Yet, those who are sooo sick of the government (and want to elect Trump, Carlson, Cruz - even though he is a part of the Fed, (etc.)) and want less government intrusion, never complain when the gov does something to help or improve their life or comfort.
Under the influence of Apple, AT&T used unlimited data as a way of attracting shoppers to the first-generation iPhone. Both AT&T and Verizon have veered away from unlimited plans in recent times, however, in order to avoid spending more on network infrastructure.
Unlimited data was the norm way before that. I had unlimited data on my Blackberry 957, which was around the year 2000, and ran on the Mobitex network.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mesomorphicman
Yet, those who are sooo sick of the government (and want to elect Trump, Carlson, Cruz - even though he is a part of the Fed, (etc.)) and want less government intrusion, never complain when the gov does something to help or improve their life or comfort.
You actually think it's going to improve your life? The last time AT&T/Cingular got sued, I got a 250 minute prepaid phone card. What's the net result of all of this government fuss? Think it through. AT&T and ISPs will never ever sell anything "unlimited" ever again. This is only driving data caps forward.
"The change may be another response to legal actions by both the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission. AT&T is still fighting a $100 million fine from the FCC, which accused it of using misleading statements about its unlimited plans. The FTC is suing for similar reasons, and if successful, some of the damages should be returned to affected AT&T customers."
Yet, those who are sooo sick of the government (and want to elect Trump, Carlson, Cruz - even though he is a part of the Fed, (etc.)) and want less government intrusion, never complain when the gov does something to help or improve their life or comfort.
Yeah, anybody know what VERIZON'S current policy is on throttling heir "unlimited" plan? I would think they are affected by the outcome of this suit as well.
As a commuter who uses Apple Music and has an occasional WiFi issue where I stream Netflix over cellular, I can say that hitting 10+ GB a month is doable without intentionally trying to use a lot of data.
Now if I was *really* trying to use data, I imagine that I could cross 100GB easily. You'd be amazed how much data downloading apps can use!
OR using Netflix on AMTRAK (because their WiFi now sucks, too many users).
Somehow I don't think 22GB is "unlimited" either...
I think it's a reasonable concession for the grandfathered unlimited customers. Attrition will eventually bring their numbers down to an acceptable number of "casualties."
They're not taking away your unlimited and replacing it with a 22GB plan. They're making 22GB of usage the point at which an unlimted user can have speeds throttled. It was just 5GB before you received a warning and throttling. Users should be happy about this....this is the closest thing we're going to get to what unlimited used to be. Even if you use GPS and stream music in the car every day, you're not going to use 22GB of data in a month unless you have no access to WiFi otherwise.
[quote name="sflocal" url="/t/188271/at-t-shifts-data-cap-for-grandfathered-unlimited-plans-from-5gb-to-22gb#post_2777446"]I'm still fortunate to have the unlimited grandfathered plan. Even with that, I still use WiFi as much as possible and my recent monthly usage was in the 300MB range.
Using 22GB in one month (to me) on a phone is insane. What exactly do these people do on their devices to go through that much data in one month? It's non-stop Netflix Videos, youtube, probably even using it as their primary internet hotspot and connecting everything through it? What gives?
Maybe if you turned off the wifi you would be less judgmental after you see your real usage.
Dear AT&T,
As long as there is a limit, it's not really "Unlimited". Furthermore, if no one has hit the 20GB limit, why not just remove it altogether?
As others have stated unlimited quantity of data is NOT the same as promising the fastest speed all the time. Your quantity of data is and always has been unlimited.
What they really need is wider coverage and a more robust backhaul. My signal is weak at home and the office which makes it feel throttled all the time.
The original design of cellular networks was to have many triangulated towers so that you would always have a strong signal, but with permitting issues and expenses they just settled for a tower every 20 miles or so along the interstates, hence, during rush hour all the towers are congested.
Somehow I don't think 22GB is "unlimited" either...
For me it's good enough - I hit the old limit every three months or so. Good move by ATT - glad I stuck with my grandfathered plan now that it's more valuable.
Having said that, unlimited - even in wired - isn't sustainable. Bandwidth isn't unlimited - it is a finite resource. Things like 4K video have to be giving infrastructure planners nightmares. Before the iPhone, people didn't use much data on a smartphone since it really wasn't possible too. I had a windows phone - apps were non-existent and web browsing was a joke. It probably didn't seem that much of a risk to offer "unlimited" data. Ha! If they only knew (then again Verizon did but still felt compelled to for their first year).
Like all politics being local, carrier performance is highly dependent on your location. My iPhone is on ATT but because of all the "Verizon is better" chanting I got Verizon on my iPad. I'm glad I didn't change my phone to Verizon first - in my area Verizon data sucks compared to ATT (and I care way more about data than voice). I ride on a commuter bus a few times a week and on at least a third of the route I get NO data connectivity at all on Verizon, but my phone on ATT always works.
And no, it's not an iPad vs iPhone difference. There's an excellent app in the app store - Coverage Map - that crowd sources strength data and the Verizon coverage map is a splotchy patchwork on my commute where ATT is solid green - mirroring my experience.
Unlimited data was the norm way before that. I had unlimited data on my Blackberry 957, which was around the year 2000, and ran on the Mobitex network
Lol - back then crappy phones and crappy user experiences were the throttling mechanism. As ATT found out, especially one apps and the 3G hit the airwaves
Yeah, anybody know what VERIZON'S current policy is on throttling heir "unlimited" plan? I would think they are affected by the outcome of this suit as well.
I thought they weren't renewing them, forcing everyone off of them? That's one way to "solve" the problem.
So, explain something to me. AT&T gets slapped with a $100 million fine for illegally throttling "unlimited" accounts, and they are STILL throttling? Where do they find people stupid enough to be their customers?
Comments
Yet, those who are sooo sick of the government (and want to elect Trump, Carlson, Cruz - even though he is a part of the Fed, (etc.)) and want less government intrusion, never complain when the gov does something to help or improve their life or comfort.
How about bringing back those unlimited plans?
NFWP. That was a major misestimation of effort on the part of AT&T from the initial iPhone launch days almost a decade ago.
Under the influence of Apple, AT&T used unlimited data as a way of attracting shoppers to the first-generation iPhone. Both AT&T and Verizon have veered away from unlimited plans in recent times, however, in order to avoid spending more on network infrastructure.
Unlimited data was the norm way before that. I had unlimited data on my Blackberry 957, which was around the year 2000, and ran on the Mobitex network.
Yet, those who are sooo sick of the government (and want to elect Trump, Carlson, Cruz - even though he is a part of the Fed, (etc.)) and want less government intrusion, never complain when the gov does something to help or improve their life or comfort.
You actually think it's going to improve your life? The last time AT&T/Cingular got sued, I got a 250 minute prepaid phone card. What's the net result of all of this government fuss? Think it through. AT&T and ISPs will never ever sell anything "unlimited" ever again. This is only driving data caps forward.
"The change may be another response to legal actions by both the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission. AT&T is still fighting a $100 million fine from the FCC, which accused it of using misleading statements about its unlimited plans. The FTC is suing for similar reasons, and if successful, some of the damages should be returned to affected AT&T customers."
Yet, those who are sooo sick of the government (and want to elect Trump, Carlson, Cruz - even though he is a part of the Fed, (etc.)) and want less government intrusion, never complain when the gov does something to help or improve their life or comfort.
Yeah, anybody know what VERIZON'S current policy is on throttling heir "unlimited" plan? I would think they are affected by the outcome of this suit as well.
As a commuter who uses Apple Music and has an occasional WiFi issue where I stream Netflix over cellular, I can say that hitting 10+ GB a month is doable without intentionally trying to use a lot of data.
Now if I was *really* trying to use data, I imagine that I could cross 100GB easily. You'd be amazed how much data downloading apps can use!
OR using Netflix on AMTRAK (because their WiFi now sucks, too many users).
Somehow I don't think 22GB is "unlimited" either...
I think it's a reasonable concession for the grandfathered unlimited customers. Attrition will eventually bring their numbers down to an acceptable number of "casualties."
They're not taking away your unlimited and replacing it with a 22GB plan. They're making 22GB of usage the point at which an unlimted user can have speeds throttled. It was just 5GB before you received a warning and throttling. Users should be happy about this....this is the closest thing we're going to get to what unlimited used to be. Even if you use GPS and stream music in the car every day, you're not going to use 22GB of data in a month unless you have no access to WiFi otherwise.
Using 22GB in one month (to me) on a phone is insane. What exactly do these people do on their devices to go through that much data in one month? It's non-stop Netflix Videos, youtube, probably even using it as their primary internet hotspot and connecting everything through it? What gives?
Maybe if you turned off the wifi you would be less judgmental after you see your real usage.
As others have stated unlimited quantity of data is NOT the same as promising the fastest speed all the time. Your quantity of data is and always has been unlimited.
What they really need is wider coverage and a more robust backhaul. My signal is weak at home and the office which makes it feel throttled all the time.
The original design of cellular networks was to have many triangulated towers so that you would always have a strong signal, but with permitting issues and expenses they just settled for a tower every 20 miles or so along the interstates, hence, during rush hour all the towers are congested.
Too late. I gave it up and went to Verizon.
Far better coverage and service.
For me it's good enough - I hit the old limit every three months or so. Good move by ATT - glad I stuck with my grandfathered plan now that it's more valuable.
Having said that, unlimited - even in wired - isn't sustainable. Bandwidth isn't unlimited - it is a finite resource. Things like 4K video have to be giving infrastructure planners nightmares. Before the iPhone, people didn't use much data on a smartphone since it really wasn't possible too. I had a windows phone - apps were non-existent and web browsing was a joke. It probably didn't seem that much of a risk to offer "unlimited" data. Ha! If they only knew (then again Verizon did but still felt compelled to for their first year).
Here's the biggest argument for why people should have to pay for every byte of cellular data they use: http://m.theregister.co.uk/2015/05/06/fcc_wants_to_know_if_carriers_can_grab_some_of_your_wifi_signal/
From the careful-what-you-wish-for department...
In the meantime I'll still enjoy my unlimited (but not really) data plan
I'm not going to devolve into a fit of entitled rage when it does eventually go away...
Like all politics being local, carrier performance is highly dependent on your location. My iPhone is on ATT but because of all the "Verizon is better" chanting I got Verizon on my iPad. I'm glad I didn't change my phone to Verizon first - in my area Verizon data sucks compared to ATT (and I care way more about data than voice). I ride on a commuter bus a few times a week and on at least a third of the route I get NO data connectivity at all on Verizon, but my phone on ATT always works.
And no, it's not an iPad vs iPhone difference. There's an excellent app in the app store - Coverage Map - that crowd sources strength data and the Verizon coverage map is a splotchy patchwork on my commute where ATT is solid green - mirroring my experience.
Lol - back then crappy phones and crappy user experiences were the throttling mechanism. As ATT found out, especially one apps and the 3G hit the airwaves
I thought they weren't renewing them, forcing everyone off of them? That's one way to "solve" the problem.
I have a 15GB a month plan that has rollover data. So I usually have more than 22GB available at any time.
In addition I get Hotspot capabilities AND I pay $25 less a month for the line.
Look into switching to the 15GB a month with rollover and you'll save money.
And if you go over your limit you can buy more data - you can never pay ATT to stop throttling you.