Ars Technica brings us AT&T’s congestion magically disappears when it’s signing up new customers:
Like other carriers, AT&T slows the speeds of certain users when the network is congested. Such network management is a necessary evil that can benefit the majority of customers when used to ensure that everyone can connect to the network. But as Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler has argued, the carriers’ selective enforcement of throttling shows that it can also be used to boost revenue by pushing subscribers onto pricier plans.
AT&T’s throttling only applies to users with “legacy unlimited data plans,” the kinds of customers that AT&T wants to push onto limited plans with overage charges. Initially, the throttling was enforced once users passed 3GB or 5GB in a month regardless of whether the network was congested. In July, AT&T changed its policy so that throttling only hits those users at times and in places when the network is actually congested, according to an AT&T spokesperson. The 3GB and 5GB thresholds, with the higher one applied to LTE devices, were unchanged.
You can use the Internet Archive’s WayBack Machine to see that, through June, AT&T throttled unlimited subscribers whether its network was congested or not. The site, both then and now, encourages heavy data users to switch to a tiered or shared data plan. AT&T says that more than 80 percent of its postpaid smartphone subscribers are on limited plans.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by black6host on Tuesday September 30 2014, @01:57AM
A major corporation wants to give less and charge more. And people just take it. Why is beyond me. Eventually those on unlimited plans will go by the wayside through attrition. AT&T can afford to wait this one out and come across looking good because they've stopped throttling for the unlimited plans unless there is congestion.
Those pesky customers will pay the piper one day.....
(Score: 1) by VIPERsssss on Tuesday September 30 2014, @02:57PM
I switched to exede. So far I'm happy.
I'm not a gamer, though. I don't have any wired options in my specific area of BFE.
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Wednesday October 01 2014, @02:23AM
What do they charge? I banged around their website and never did find any prices for internet alone (unless they're in popups, which I block). I did find their estimator gadget, which thinks I use around 16GB/mo. (which is probably about right). Not interested in DirectTV bundling.
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 1) by VIPERsssss on Wednesday October 01 2014, @02:18PM
I went with their highest package 25G mo @ $120ish. (I was paying almost 300 before)
Right now I have the 50G deal for 6 mo. as a bonus for signing up.
Yesterday was the last day of the month and I still had 4.5G (ish) left.
This being the first month was probably an anomaly since my son recovered an XBox 360 and re-downloaded games and updates.
(Score: 2) by Reziac on Wednesday October 01 2014, @02:40PM
Ouch. Out of my budget...
And there is no Alkibiades to come back and save us from ourselves.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday September 30 2014, @02:25AM
I just read (in the book "Competing on Analytics", that was otherwise flattering about the company) that Netflix was once accused of throttling heavy users [foxnews.com] of its service, apparently justifiably because they settled a class action lawsuit (apparently Netflix included wording like "shipped often on the same day" in its advertising).
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Hairyfeet on Tuesday September 30 2014, @08:43AM
From anything vital to the Internet and having plenty of routes that don't come near the USA, as even our mega-cities like LA and NY are quickly falling behind countries like Romania thanks to our politicians and courts sucking so hard the corporate cock. We already paid the corps 200 BILLION [pbs.org] just to get nationwide broadband that wouldn't even equal Europe, much less Asia, and all we got for that money is a low res jpeg of the board of directors flipping us off while they snorted blow off 10,000 hookers, do we REALLY think it is EVAR gonna get ANY better? Really? Enjoy what you have folks because that is gonna be the best you get, as laying infrastructure is more expensive than buying politicians.
BTW if the rumors rumbling around is true we aren't even gonna have a duopoly much longer, its gonna be monopoly only as DSL is gonna be left to rot while the big carriers push their insanely priced mobile data, so soon you'll have "supermegacable" at some insane price and capped all to shit. And on that day the world will be smart if they just cut off contact and let the USA rot in its capitalist "utopia" while they move on with functional gigabit everywhere.
ACs are never seen so don't bother. Always ready to show SJWs for the racists they are.