Although AT&T's policy of throttling the top 5 percent of its unlimited data plan subscribers has drawn a lot of flak from customers, wireless experts always defended these practices citing the wireless spectrum crunch.
But it seems, that over a period of half a year since throttling started, the lower limit for falling into the top five percent has drastically reduced from double digits to a mere 2GB.
John Cozen, an AT&T unlimited data plan subscriber, got a text message from AT&T warning that he might be throttled:
"I received a message during my last billing cycle, warning I was in the top 5% of my region and would experience reduced data speeds next time I reach that level of data use. I immediately checked my data usage on the AT&T iOS app.
2.1 GB. Less than I expected considering AT&T offers a 3GB plan for $30 a month. The same amount I’ve paid for the unlimited data plan since signing up with them many years ago."
His communication with AT&T customer care confirmed that the warning message was no error, and that the lower limit to fall in the top 5 percent has indeed reduced to 2GB.
Another such case was seen on Reddit, where a user posted an image which showed his monthly data usage being a mere 1.6GB, and yet he fell into the top 5 percent.
The whole point of throttling was to discourage users from consuming an excessive amount of data, and now that the lower limit has fallen to less than 2GB, AT&T should do the right thing and not throttle these users.
A better solution could be setting a fixed, minimum limit and checking each subscriber falling into the top five percent against this limit. If any of them fall below, their data speeds should be the same, and not throttled. This solution also has its flaws, the most obvious one being that the "unlimited" plan loses whatever unlimited status it had, with the rigid limit, but it is definitely better than the current system in place.
As Cozen noted above, usage of 2.1GB falling into the excessive users group is upsetting, since AT&T offers a 3GB data plan for the same price as the unlimited plan, $30.
And in case you are not aware, the throttled data speeds are pathetic.
[via MacRumors]
Let’s sue those bastards!
Agreed! Define the word UNLiMiTED. They need a dictionary!
They do give u unlimited data but they will throttle u after u pass up 2 gigs. It is still unlimited regardless of how fast the speed is
I agree , but when I first sign up for unlimited I was told unlimited 3G data, 3G itself determines my speeds, AT&T counting on pol being ignorant and saying “we promise data not speeds” , when that is false
Actually the meaning of Unlimited by Mirriam webster is below so i would say speed\data should be unrestricted.
1: lacking any controls : unrestricted
2: boundless, infinite
3: not bounded by exceptions : undefined
I only used 1.2 GB and I also received the message twice! So what is really the limit? Becauae it obviously has to be less than 1.2…
I only used 1.2 GB and I also received the message twice! So what is really the limit? Becauae it obviously has to be less than 1.2.
That’s weird.. I’m at over 3GB and I haven’t gotten any notification from AT&T. Now that I say something, of course…
This only applies to those that have an Unlimited data plan.
And, if you read the article, throttling is geared toward the top 5% in your area; if, the top 5% in your area is at at 2GB then AT&T’s logic suggests you will be throttled. Your punishment for using ( or misusing according to AT&T ) is predicated by what other people around you are doing.
That’s weird.. I’m at over 3GB and I haven’t gotten any notification from AT&T. Now that I say something, of course..
Apparently the mobile version of the site is saying comment post failed when it actually succeeds.
I have some good friends at AT&T and was told APPLE is pissed at this 2 gig throttle speed for there iphone users this should be a class action law suite be cause if you ask for your old cantract it states know where about throttling speeds
Finally, someone with a mind! Class action is the only answer and I am really surprised that some ambulance chaser hasn’t figured this out because they will win. There is a reason AT&T hasn’t just done away with unlimited data usage… they contractually can’t. And, until the ‘collective’ speak out, AT&T will operate in breech of contract. It’s like trying to force someone out of a rent controlled apartment in NYC.
This is completely stupid! I got the same text a week ago. Im half way my billing cycle and I’m already at 2321.18 mb how do they expect me to use no more than 2gb?
I think they are throttling people as a scheme to get rid of users of the old unlimited data plan cause I used only 1 gb and got a message. My speeds are at .12 Mbps
I wish I could afford to move to sprint.
I can confirm this to be true and also complete BS! Kind of glad I’m not the only one that got struck with this. I received an email on January 25th last month stating I was in the top 5% so I checked my usage immediately after and it says I only used 2085.3 MB of data! Thats ridiculous, considering my speed dropped down so low that even simple websites took minutes to load when they should’ve taken seconds. How is it that I could be within the top 5% when im sure AT&T has plenty of users I’m sure we’ll above that range. They better switch this up real fast. I refuse to switch to a tiered data plan just so they can suck an extra $30 or whatever out of me for going a few kilobytes of data. Oh and for the record I currently have the so called “unlimited” (my ass) data plan. Thanks for showing me what a loyal customer I am, AT&T.
Think about this, when all those super high data users were getting out by the top 5% rule. Next month they use less and another 5% users use less than the previous month 5% users due to the speed limit. Ultimately the top 5% figure is controlled by AT&T and under 3GB. And does AT&T combine the unlimited data plan users and the limited-data plan to calculate the 5%, if they do, that even unfair.
So what is everybody that got the message going to do about this?
Anybody got a solution or is everybody going to just rant about it?
Start a pettition
Start a pettition and stop complaining
Action has more depth. Start a pettition and stop complaining
Action has more depth. Start a pettition and stop complaining. Post complaints will not move AT&T. Get the right number of customers that can catch their attention.
I didn’t see anyone stating the obvious, but the reason the 5% threshold is dropping is because more and more people have signed up for the 2GB (or lower) plans and these people use less than 2GB to avoid getting hit with another $25 charge. Users that go over 2GB are going to fall in the top 5% (or lower) percentile. I totally agree that AT&T are scum for throttling us at below 3GB, since we are paying the same as that currently available plan. I have a hard time believing that the will be able to get away with this for very long, and with more users signing up for the 3GB plan we should start seeing the throttling limit increase in any case.
Hmm. My earlier comment is gone, it looks like.
I don’t have a solution, but I, too, am in the 5%, having used 2.1GB in 13 days. My e-mail said that I wouldn’t be throttled down this month, but next month (or, I assume, the next time I’m in the 5%) it would be. This is the first time I’ve even been CLOSE to 2GB, I’m usually just over 1GB.
I think the whole thing is stupid. They should charge for SPEED, like home internet, not quantity. It should be all the data you want, at “X” Mbps.
Why is my comment still showing “awaiting moderation”? Over the last 2 days, I’ve had a couple comments disappear completely and a couple still say awaiting moderation. What’s up with that? Contact me, iPhoneHacks!
Yep, count me in as one of the top 5% of data users at just 1.7 GB’s last month!!! The month before I got throttled at 2.1 GB’s. There needs to be a class action lawsuit filed soon. Since “unlimited” users pay the same 3GB users, we should at least be allowed to reach that limit. This is criminal of AT&T. I’ve exhausted myself with calls into their customer service department. It’s like they are trained robots to tell you the same lame excuse over and over again, while it is crystal clear they are trying to get everyone on a tiered plan. Is there a lawyer in the house???? I’m sick of getting pushed around by AT&T!
People need to stand up to corporate ATT. I, After my travels to taiwan. I have realized that all the US wireless carriers are robbing americans blind!!!!!
Allow me to explain the difference between a foreign carrier such as in Taiwan, Chuanghua Telecom. Having cellular service in Taiwan has open my eyes to how much I or all americans have been over paying for wireless service. In taiwan, just a basic wireless serivce cost as low as $10 a month. You don’t pay for a huge monthly plan for 400-900 or whatever mins a month for $50-100 a month. Instead, you you pay for mins used, and in contrast if you do used 900 mins a month then yes you pay for 900 min, but it still comes out to what you pay in the US monthly plan cost for your monthly mins most times even less. Also. Taiwan 3G coverage is far more faster then the coverage I have in Hawaii. I get over 2 megs consistently where as in hawaii, i avg half a mbps in lot of the area. Hawaii is getting robbed more than any other state i believe. In taiwan they have unlimited and limited data plan, and its only like $10-20 a month, and really is unlimited, no throttleing. They dont care about tethering either, or charge you for it. My monthly cell phone bill in taiwan is $33 a month for $15 worth of mins, and unlimited reallly fast 3G internet. In hawaii I was paying $100-$150 a month. What a JOKE!! We as american should stand up against corporate america and demand fairness and restructure! Come on people we are wasting money. Look at the difference $33 vs. $150 . We are over paying!!! ATT are banking on mins we dont need, even with so call rollover mins, thats just rediculous!!what the hell do I do with 13,000 rollover mins? and limited data plans? come on they just want more profits…on top of the profit they already make. and throttling Unlimited uses,, they just want people to pay for data usage that they already pay for. Stop pleasing the shareholders, our economy is in the toilet! This is why american is going no where with its debt, we keep paying out money unnesscessarily to huge companies that just blow money on advertising, and huge bonuses, and other things that dont support the economy, americans are in debt because we are suck in to the habit of overspending and over paying life style. Cost are rising, value of the dollar is dropping. why even go on anymore. Stop the monopolizings, stop the high costs!! People dont need to make more money, and ask for raises, goverments and companies need to stop raising costs. and stop blaming raising cost dues to raising cost of business. if cost of business go up for the business, take it up with the governments, they have the power to control cost, they control the oil, they control the interest rates. refered the cost to them, dont pass it on to the people, people are ignorant, and stupid, and believe what ever they see on TV. And believe life is what the government and the companies tell you it it. Governments and company don’t support the economy. They support the government and the companies. We as people are just on the bottom of the food chain. If corporation were looking out for the economy, they would start giving money back to the people. Put money back into americans pocket. Would we be able to pay off out debts better if we had to pay $500 less on month in bills. If american can all come together, and I really mean the big corporations and the government, and stop profiteering, and help reduce cost of living for all americans, we can reduce our national debt, get out of proverty, save money for the future, and reclaim our pride as americans. living the american dream. I know we can’t control oil prices in america, but american companies can stop sucking the dollar bills in our wallets. I challenge all us wireless carriers to operate like Taiwan wireless carrier companies. I challenge all telecommunication companies to stop looking at profits for the company and shareholders, but look at what is good for quality of life for all american. rent, food, gas, ultilities, misc. cost the cost please!!
if it didn’t cost $1500-$2000 a month to survive in the US, the goverment would have to worry about being in debt. I want to see someone change our nation. Challenge the companies and the government to do better for less. To Be selfless, I wish people would stop and open there eyes and see 90% of americans will be taken advantage off and be at the merci of the government. Americans need to take care of america, we have let it rot long enough.
As fast as facebook can spread a message, i want someone to let world know, we want a better country. we want a cheaper country, a frugle contry, a prosperous country. The goverment is gonna keep doing what its doing, because americans have forgotten how to get together as one nation. And the government thrives on thats. as longs as the governenment think people are ignorant, they can keep doing thing the way they want. Sometimes I wish one right person can just go in there and just stop the curruption, stop the governments uselessness, unified the people, work at our problems, fix them, get back on track, and get back to reasonable comfortable living.
what a socialist ramble.
You sir are a communist.
They throttle me down and I’m leaving for T-Mobile. Sure I’ll have to give up my iPhone … for now. T-Mobile is currently offering Unlimited data/text/talk plans for $90 & $120 including tethering. They throttle down too but at 5GB & 10GB depending on plan. That’s what I pay AT&T for their “Unlimited” plan and I don’t even have unlimited talk and they want extra to text and tether. There should be an iPhone out soon that will have 3G/4G capabilites on the T-Mobile network. When it comes out I’m gone from AT&T regardless. Besides, I want the hot girl in the pink dress to keep working. Thank goodness the merger was cancelled.
I got the same msg..! F**k
Im certainly in that top 5% but using international data, almost 11 Gb this month but have never received a txt message from AT&T. I am on the international unlimited for $65/month that is no longer offered, I’m interested to hear if any other people with this plan have received txt’s or been throttled?
When all of us unlimited data users start getting throttled we need to have huge downloads going 24/7 to get thé top 5% usage number to raise. You can get close to a gig downloaded overnight and anytime you’re plugged in start a huge download. If we keep this up for a long time it should raise the throttle limit significantly. Get my3g for lifting the 20MB cellular limit and there’s multiple download programs in the app store that have no limits when using them to download files. This needs to go big to make a big difference though. Good luck
An easier way to do that is to upload instead of download. I noticed that they are throttling my download speeds but not my upload speeds. So I would upload a bunch of pictures and videos to Dropbox again and again to increase the data usage. I started getting reduced download speeds at 1.95 GB.
If anybody has the guts to start a petition, I have a guaranteed 500 + signatures ready to sign! Less yap yap yap and more action please!
If you have 500 guaranteed signatures then have the guts and start a petition
I hope AT&T goes bankrupt
LMAO what financial reports are YOU looking at?
What is wrong with AT&T.
I have a factory unlock 4s in the states, useing T-mobile monthly 4g plan unlimited talk,text, 100mb at 3g then they trottle after $47.50 a month…. 2gb for $60… Not sure what u fanboys AT&T r paying but it has to be $70-80 for crappy service unlimited… And yes i save more money in the long run not signing up for a contract
If u plan on staying with tmobile for awhile just sign a stupid contract u will save a bundle instead of paying month to month bs with only 100mb of data.
I’ve gotten the top 5% message after using just 4gigs when my average is 6-7 gigs a month but was told if I purchased the 5 or 10 gig plan I would not be throttled. When asked to explain why I’m getting this with an unlimited plans I only got told it is a fair use policy.
10GIGS?! Where do you get a plan like that? I didn’t see that in my selection.
The corp plans
I received the same text over the weekend. What’s going on?
I got it a couple of months back, but truly I deserved it, I was at 42 gigs in one month.
Ditto 120gig’s in august, Dang you sweet netflix! Vevo and an incredible mixtape collection.
Anyone with the iphone 4s, if you have the $15-200mb plan, do u get a stupid extra hidden charge which is datapro 2Gb and charges 10-15 dollars extra?
We all have to call AT&T and complain. Supposedly they are taking those complaints into account. We’ll see.
I filed a complaint with the BBB.
I filed a complaint as well with bbb. Basically their rep said they changed their contact so suck it. BBB said I don’t have proof my service was interrupted. His name is Keith and said feel free to contact him. So we should all contact his a** 952 703-2344
I filed a complaint as well with bbb. Basically their att rep said they changed their contact so accept it. BBB said I don’t have proof my service was interrupted. His name is Keith and said feel free to contact him. So we should all contact his a** 952 703-2344
His name is Keith and said feel free to contact him. So we should all contact his a** 952 703-2344
His name is Keith and said feel free to contact him. So we should all contact his a** 952 703-234 four
His name is Keith and said feel free to contact him. So we should all contact his a** 9 five 2 703-234 four
His name is Keith and said feel free to contact him. So we should all contact him 9 five 2 703-234 four
His name is Keith and said feel free to contact him. So we should all contact him nine five 2 703-234 four
Att said feel free to contact him. So we should all contact him nine five 2 703-234 four
That is not true I’m passed 7 gigs already and I haven’t recieved That message
In your area people are heavy data users..! That’s why!
It might even get worse if MIT Romney become president. Remember he said he doesn’t care for the very poor, so AT&T will even have more powers and start their throttling at just 1 gb, because as we all know that the retugnicant party is the biggest lobbyist for the big corporations. May God bless America.
I have used almost 2gig of my unlimited internet and received that message.. second month already…and getting speed of 0.06Mbps. How fair is it? If i had a chance i would’ve put my message in here for people who don’t believe and say it’s not true.
I started getting reduced data speeds at 1.95 GB. As one user has suggested, we need to keep consuming data overnight so that we can bump that 5% higher. Otherwise that 5% of top users will continue to go down as some users leave for a limited plan or use less data. I won’t be surprised if the top 5% is reached at 1.5GB next month. Notice that (for now) AT&T is only throttling you download speed but not your upload speed (I get 0.07 GB download and about 1GB upload). So to bump up that top 5% I will start uploading pics and videos to Dropbox overnight every night.
Also, we should all file a class action law suit against AT&T. We are paying for “unlimited” and that’s what we should get.
Why can’t US carriers be like the russians. Check this article: “In Russia, downloading 419GB over 3G in one week wins you a $5000 holiday” http://thenextweb.com/mobile/2012/02/06/in-russia-downloading-419gb-over-3g-in-one-week-wins-you-a-5000-holiday/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheNextWeb+%28The+Next+Web+All+Stories%29
I also recieved the text and I’m a 2.1GB (been on unlimited plan forever). I average 2 to 3 GB a month but this is the first time I recieved anything. I recieved an email the day after saying they (AT&T) understand that data usage can vary from month to month and that I would not experience reduced speeds.
Someone post how we can fight this and we all do it the same way I.E. BBB complaints or something of that nature.
found this website for att throttling petition. http://www.change.org/petitions/att-data-throttle#. check it out and sign it. i been trying to post this site up but it’s not showing up.
News flash! AT&T is well aware of the situation they cornered you into. They lost customers today. They’ve already done the math for alllll factors involved. The customer complaints alone are costing them. Top 5%? It’s a parlor trick and they expect to win. You guys should eat the fee and jump carriers. You can sell your phone to recover some of the costs.
does anyone have sprint with the iphone? How is the service and speed? do they limit data or truly unlimited?
Thanks
There charging me unlimited price for package plan sevice and it’s not rite
Att rep said feel free to contact him. So we should all contact him nine five 2 703-234 four
I got the text today and I only used 1.75 gb
i will switch !!!!! screw you at&t!!!!!
i will switch !!!!! screw you at&t!
i will switch !!!!! screw you at&t!
i will switch !!!!! screw u
The argument that unlimited users can still use their network in an unlimited fashion albeit ridiculously slow speeds is essentially…ridiculous. Tiered users technically have unlimited access to their network as well; however, they will be charged after they reach a certain point.
Essentially, the difference here is that tiered users are being “penalized” for going over their expected data rate in monetary form. Unlimited users are being “penalized” for going over an arbitrary expected rate through a near complete bar to reasonable speeds.
Unfortunately, tiered users were aware of potentially prospective overage charges when signing up. Unlimited users were not given notice nor reasonable accommodations to their network.
I bought a ps vita 3G thinking at&t might be good for the internet but i guess not. And I can’t even use my 3G that comes with my tmobile plan because of my iPhone they better unlock he psv because the sims switch fast in the iPhone and psv or at&t can grow up and have unlimited. I used 8 gb on my prepaid tmobile plan and no one cared.
Just sign the petition so we can get this fixed.
They want us off unlimited so badly, then let us out with no ETF! I’ll even give back the Skyrocket. I’ll move on to another company and they’ll be rid of us “data hogs” using 2.5 gigs in a month. Come on att, there are so few of us that the throttling won’t affect 95% of users. If that really is the case, I find it hard to believe there is that much burden from so few people. And if we are so few, it won’t hurt to let us out of our contracts so we can get out of their hair.
This will never end until all unlimited customers are gone. Once the 3-5 gig users are gone, then the 2-3 gig users are the top 5%. Then once they are gone, the 1-2 gig users are the top 5%, and so on. Why not just cut to the chase and let us out now?
I was never throttled before and I knew it was coming when I re-upped in November 2011. I just had no idea that 2or 3 gigs of data would be considered a lot. Plus, I had no clue that att would cut down the bandwidth to make the phone practically unusable for data. I don’t consider myself a data hog, but I am in a truck all day with no access to wi-fi and the town in which I work has horrible radio reception. So, I use TuneIn Radio to listen to the radio. I do a little web surfing, etc and use about 2-3 gigs. It simply is not right to cut us down to nothing and make the phone unusable. They have all the technology and could tell who is using gigs in a day versus 2-3 or even 4 gigs over a whole month.
I received the message after 7 days of my billing cycles and the claimed that I have used 2.3GB within 7 days. I m on LTE network that is congested yet, what I don’t understand if I am not affecting everybody, why would they need to throttle me from the first place. all these schemes are just about $$$$$. they are trying to get me to switch to metered data. it is not going to happen. after I spoke to them a few times, they claimed they can’t do anything about it. I was like ok. I know what I am going to do, I am driving the usage up. I let my phone run at night , playing videos and music by itself, wasting data, I am half way through my billing and I already racked in about 9GB, I will end my billing cycle with about 20GB, rest assure I will get there, I don’t care what everybody says, but I am driving the usage up….
when I am getting a msg that my speed will be slowed down at 2.3GB. what’s left to say.
I think everybody should do the same and drive the usage up.
Hell yeah just because they keep throttling you ..keep on using the phone download as much as u can lets get them mad