AT&T explains reasons for data throttling

Written by

Zach Epstein:

In an effort to justify its policies surrounding data service throttling for subscribers with unlimited smartphone data plans, AT&T on Tuesday issued a brief report regarding data usage on its nationwide wireless network. Senior EVP of AT&T technology and network operations John Donovan wrote on a company blog that data traffic on AT&T’s network has grown a staggering 20,000% over the past five years. Usage has doubled between 2010 and 2011 according to the executive, due in large part to the proliferation of smartphones.

Oh, so it’s our fault.



  • http://twitter.com/GlennF Glenn Fleishman

    “Even though we charge $30 for 3GB to other customers, we throttle our $30 unlimited to 2GB because of…wait, I have the reason here somewhere.”

  • http://twitter.com/mynameisseb Sebastian Atwater

    So at&t makes the deals with the OEMs to bring out better and more powerful devices that consumers actually want to buy and use on their network, but then blames us for using these devices?

    Meanwhile, more apps are introduced by basically everyone that rely on some sort of solid, reliable data connection, so in order to foster this type of innovation, the carriers introduce data caps.

    It sucks being an American phone buyer.

  • Jeff Q

    Is that the reason my iPhone became a paperweight this month?

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/David-Butt/100000495024730 David Butt

    Meanwhile in the great white north, our usually toothless telecommunications regulator went to other way: http://thetyee.ca/Mediacheck/2012/02/15/CRTC-Internet-Throttling/

  • Conte6251

    Read up,and do your own investigations, there is no real issue with bandwidth or congested towers in 90% of the united states. A few large cities are congested and a greedy company,AT&T, that should increase the system, instead of faking a congestion issue to gain acceptance of the dead T-mobile deal. So AT&T has to recoup $4billion and prove to the government and everybody else that without T-mobile, AT&Ts system cannot handle it’s current customer load. In my area of 200 people,we don’t have congestion issues. So far in Los Angeles,San Jose,san Francisco,and most of central and northern California I have never experiened any issues with congestion. I’ve been with AT&T before it was AT&T,GTE mobile net.stupid move AT&T. Think we wouldn’t find out ?