Download too much? VZW will throttle your internet speed!

[Titaniac]

For new subscribers after today, if you download too much, then your data speed will be throttled. I was dissappointed when I saw this, but not surprised.

Verizon Memo: Use Too Much Data and You'll Be Slowed Down - FoxBusiness.com#

https://ecache.vzw.com/imageFiles/Myacct/nda/images/docs/VerizonWirelessServiceInformation.pdf

Makes you wonder if this is because they fear iPhone usage when it come out next week.

 

[inphoenix]

So does anyone know how much is too much? I read somewhere that most of the 'average' users are in 1 to 2 GB per month range. 5 GB and above puts you in 'heavy' user category. Is that correct?

 

[bbuck002]

this only applies to people signing unlimited data contracts after today.

 

[Deleted User]

this only applies to people signing unlimited data contracts after today.

I seriously doubt that. I virtually guarantee this is a blanket change across their whole network.



inphoenix; they are cutting it off by percentage. There isn't going to be a tier of data where you suddenly belong in the top 5%, and I am very doubtful that VZW would release statistics like that anyway.

I suspect very few people will be affected by this who are doing any kind of normal, reasonable usage and even fewer who get filtered but aren't doing stupid shit like torrenting through their phone.

 

[Frisco]

this only applies to people signing unlimited data contracts after today.

So, they may need to change their data plan name to, "sort of unlimited." Or, "unlimited, but limited."

 

[tsanuri]

I seriously doubt that. I virtually guarantee this is a blanket change across their whole network.



inphoenix; they are cutting it off by percentage. There isn't going to be a tier of data where you suddenly belong in the top 5%, and I am very doubtful that VZW would release statistics like that anyway.

I suspect very few people will be affected by this who are doing any kind of normal, reasonable usage and even fewer who get filtered but aren't doing stupid shit like torrenting through their phone.

If you look at the Q4 numbers we are talking 26% of their customers are using smartphones right now. And if it is only from those customers that risk being throttled then it is approx 1.23 mil people that it could happen to within each month. I agree it should not be very many pepole but I will almost guarentee those that it will affect will be here or other fan sites. And they will be very vocal about it.

So, they may need to change their data plan name to, "sort of unlimited." Or, "unlimited, but limited."

Where I don't like it one bit it is still unlimited. Show me where in the contract there is a speed guarentee? So you can still use unlimited just at the speed you get.

 

[bbuck002]

its in the press release that this applies to newly registered unlimited plans as of today. i didn't say i believed it, i'm just relaying the message.

 

[Frisco]

Where I don't like it one bit it is still unlimited. Show me where in the contract there is a speed guarentee? So you can still use unlimited just at the speed you get.

I guess some smilies were needed in my post.

 

[eraursls1984]

I suspect very few people will be affected by this who are doing any kind of normal, reasonable usage and even fewer who get filtered but aren't doing stupid shit like torrenting through their phone.

What do you call normal? I've never downloaded torrents, even on my pc, I've never tethered either. All I do is browse the web, email listen to Pandora and rhapsody, and go to the market. What is not normal about that, I've used 16 gb in a month and I'm regularly over 10 gb.

 

[nlsme]

By throttling the speed they are limiting how much data you can use. Not unlimited.

 

[Steven58]

Well, I signed up the whole fam for the plan unlimited data/text last week... so we're all safe.

 

[Wally World]

I sort of agree with this only if they don't make it retro to people that signed contracts without this enacted. I know hogs who download 10gigs plus and this sucks up my bandwidth. 2gigs per month is a boatload.

 

[Deleted User]

By throttling the speed they are limiting how much data you can use. Not unlimited.

With due respect, everyone who honestly believes that "unlimited" means "unlimited" simply isn't realistic, reasonable, or paying attention.

ALL unlimited plans for ALL services are done based on a reasonable expectation of usage. Fair or not, that's the way it is. Every service provider of every type that says they offer an unlimited plan is over-subscribing themselves. Obviously, there aren't unlimited resources anywhere, and they can't provide to customers that fully leverage "unlimited" plans. So they guess. They estimate. They collect data and try to provide the most reasonable expectation of how much the average consumer will use, and cater to that, and deal with overages as outliers. When overages become the norm, they need to adjust.

You can argue that the verbiage shouldn't be "unlimited" but consumers do this to themselves. The word "unlimited" is put onto a marketing literature and everyone wants that. So all the manufacturers, to stay competitive, say they offer "unlimited" plans even though they aren't.

AT&T put in a tier and all of a sudden everyone freaked even though it was going to save 90% of their customers $5/month.

Your unlimited plans are nothing of the sort, and, being rational about it, cannot be unlimited. Tiered pricing is what needs to happen - be it speed or consumption tiers. You can't buy "unlimited" electricity. Why should you be able to buy unlimited data? It should all be metered.

 

[tsanuri]

By throttling the speed they are limiting how much data you can use. Not unlimited.

By that logic the fact that the dl speed is not unlimited then nobody has unlimited.

 

[quickaudi]

By that logic the fact that the dl speed is not unlimited then nobody has unlimited.

lol, i had the exact same thought!

*high fives tsanuri*

 

[jhdr]

Unlimited only means that you are not charged for overages, just slowed down to dialup speeds. I have been living with this for four years, two of which I was unaware of the slow down. I called and complained about the slow speeds which could last from four to six weeks, after numerous calls for years a tech told me what was happening and that going over the 5gig mark on "ulimited" account was the reason. This all on my $60 broadband account. Now my droid account is doing the same thing.
I would look elsewhere but outhere, "where the hootowls court the chickens", "Big Red" is the only game.
About the bandwidth used, if you use any of the options available these days ie, streaming videos, music, tv, and any other uses 5gig does not last very long. Such is my experience.

 

[Coolguy71261]

i got forked thank you altell for surrendering

 

[wxman2003]

How do they plan to throttle back something that is already slow to begin with? Doesn't matter as all that will be left on their 3G network by this time next year will be the iPhoney customers who were stupid enough to sign 2 year contracts. The rest of us will be on 4G with our new 4G phones.

 

[Kamau]

Let me speak on this from a customer point of view.
First, when I signed up for service and chose the unlimited plan, I assumed that it would get exactly that; unlimited. That's what I paid the extra money for. I did not pay for "if". When I chose the package because of the word "unlimited". I did so because as an average consumer, that's how we shop. And I trusted Verizon because it's name.
When I chose my minutes, I knew that if I went over on them I would incur overages. That's because they make that clear just in the name alone, "1400 minutes". I know there's a cut off point with the name alone.
Playing with words is not something that should be done as carriers are doing now with "unlimited". Just be upfront and tell me what I'm getting so that my decision is an informed one.

 

[wxman2003]

Verizon isn't doing anything to violate it's contract with anyone. They are still offering unlimited data, however, unlimited data doesn't mean unlimited 3G speeds. Its means unlimited data at whatever speed they choose to allow.

 

[nycebo]

Verizon isn't doing anything to violate it's contract with anyone. They are still offering unlimited data, however, unlimited data doesn't mean unlimited 3G speeds. Its means unlimited data at whatever speed they choose to allow.

Bingo, and I fully agree with this concept. People who sit there and torrent through their phones violently impact bandwidth for the majority of users who make on demand requests for data. Consequently, the option should be throttling at the same price, or perhaps an additional charge for unthrottled speed above a certain threshold.

Again, as mentioned above, VZ does offer unlimited data...just not unlimited speed. What bothers me is that we are even in this pickle in the first place. Flat fee for data, voice or cable is such a con. I never max out on any of these. I'd much prefer my internet like my electricity or my gasoline. The more I use, the more I pay. Moreover, it would aggressively incent the telecom providers to optimize their systems even more.

 

[Frisco]

Verizon isn't doing anything to violate it's contract with anyone. They are still offering unlimited data, however, unlimited data doesn't mean unlimited 3G speeds. Its means unlimited data at whatever speed they choose to allow.

That is of course technically true.

However it is a move away from an implication in the word, "unlimited," and they know it. There would have been no meetings having to do with bringing this slowdown to users if it were not profitable to them as compared to leaving unlimited as it was.

An analogy could be the speed limits on highways reduced at points where too much approaching high speed traffic could clog up old off ramps, bridges, etc. The problem is not solved by reducing the speed; that is done by upgrading the off ramps and bridges.

 

[Deleted User]

An analogy could be the speed limits on highways reduced at points where too much approaching high speed traffic could clog up old off ramps, bridges, etc. The problem is not solved by reducing the speed; that is done by upgrading the off ramps and bridges.

Okay, let's use this analogy.

You don't upgrade your entire infrastructure because 5% of the highway travelers do 120mph while everyone else does 60mph. You figure out a way to protect the 60mph travelers from the crazies.

I maintain that anyone who purchased "unlimited" without considering that there is absolutely no such thing as unlimited resources, is deluding themselves. What you bought was protection from overages. That's what VZW is delivering. They are not charging you for overages.

They are making sure that the 5% of users who hammer the network are not hurting the experience for the other 95%. It's a smart business decision and should be fully appreciated by the 95%. Network infrastructure is expensive and I would rather VZW not pass the costs of upgrading their network to support the 5% outliers onto me.

 

[Frisco]

Well, I signed up the whole fam for the plan unlimited data/text last week... so we're all safe.

Yep, but I need to get the iPhone, so I'm wondering if it'll affect my old family plan with the new limit. That thing is going to get used a lot.

 

[nycebo]

What BV said!