AT&T Getting Heat Over Throttling Policy

March 02, 2012

AT&T (NYSE:T) is getting serious heat over its throttling policy, and customers are not pleased with the carrier’s limited data plans. Smartphone users are subscribing to data plans that promise unlimited consumption only to later find out that AT&T is slowing down speeds when users surpass a certain limit.

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AT&T recently clarified that if a user was to consume more than 3GB of data a month, then download speeds would plummet after hitting that mark. However, LTE smartphone users can reach 5GB of data before AT&T slows download speeds. Slowing down a smartphone’s Internet transfer speeds makes streaming video or downloading music next to impossible.

For smartphone users that guzzle up data by consistently streaming HD video over the network, AT&T recommends higher-cost data plans as a solution. Consumers are feeling cheated by AT&T. It’s like having a race car that can only go 45 miles an hour, some complain. It’s like being promised an all-you-can-eat buffet, but then being limited to a single plate of food. You get the idea…

Is it a tactic by AT&T to lure customers into more expensive data plans? Mobile carriers like Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ) and T-Mobile have throttling policies that they claim help clear the congestion of cellular networks of millions of customers flooding the market with smartphones. However, AT&T is getting the most heat over its policy, and customers are certain that it is a move to get them to pay more. AT&T recently lost a small claims court case over its throttling policy, triggering many other customers to file their own lawsuits in response.

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To contact the reporter on this story: Diallah Haidar at staff.writers@wallstcheatsheet.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Damien Hoffman at editors@wallstcheatsheet.com