Verizon to start throttling. The price you pay for "unlimited" :P

[SunnyD]

Link

They don't specify by how much nor how heavily throttled people will get. This sounds "reasonable" as it's worded that it is targeted at heavy users. But we all know how this usually turns out in the end, don't we?

Verizon Wireless strives to provide customers the best experience when using our network, a shared resource among tens of millions of customers. To help achieve this, if you use an extraordinary amount of data and fall within the top 5% of Verizon Wireless data users we may reduce your data throughput speeds periodically for the remainder of your then current and immediately following billing cycle to ensure high quality network performance for other users at locations and times of peak demand. Our proactive management of the Verizon Wireless network is designed to ensure that the remaining 95% of data customers aren’t negatively affected by the inordinate data consumption of just a few users.

Other things they're doing are sort of scary too... they'll be mucking with the data you request - like automatically downsizing and transcoding videos, etc. Sounds like fun times ahead for VZW users.

 

[s44]

I guess this mod was just a few days early.

 

[Red Storm]

I was already under the impression that if I went over my 5GB monthly "unlimited" cap (which takes dedication. I use data a lot and only hit between 1-2GB per month), then Verizon would throttle my connection.

Seriously though, as much as it sucks, I'm not against it for mobile phones.

 

[BigSmooth]

Well, the timing of this announcement is shady - hype up the iPhone for months, and then amid the furor of the pre-order date, suddenly release information that could negatively affect many iPhone users.

I understand the argument for throttling (although I don't really agree with it), but someone on another board pointed out that 5% of "data users" (which would include many dumbphones) could equate to 10% or more of Smartphone users, who are going to be the ones getting throttled. This isn't just going to affect people who are gobbling up excessive data by tethering or streaming Pandora 24/7, it will likely affect business travelers and other people who are simply on the high end of the scale of data usage. As an extra added bonus, it can affect your current billing cycle AND the next month as well.

The multimedia compression is perhaps even more concerning. I don't care what they say about maintaining the quality of pics and vids, if I download something I want to see it at full resolution. How will you know exactly what they are downrezzing? What else are they going to compress in the future? Net neutrality is being thrown out the window here.

 

[boomhower]

Not nearly enough information. I would be fine with it if they said if you exceed XXGB's you will be throttled to XX speed. The throttling for the next billing period is bull and the messing with media is crap as well. This makes me do a serious pause on my plans to switch from Sprint.

 

[zerocool84]

The world's becoming more and more dependent on mobile data networks, and the carriers seem to be moving backwards. Rather than embracing the change, they're all making it harder and harder for consumers to actually rely on them to get work done. Thanks for thinking of us, Verizon.

I've been saying this for months. All the carriers are hurting all the progression we've made in the mobile front. This is just so ridiculous.

 

[frostedflakes]

I was already under the impression that if I went over my 5GB monthly "unlimited" cap (which takes dedication. I use data a lot and only hit between 1-2GB per month), then Verizon would throttle my connection.

Seriously though, as much as it sucks, I'm not against it for mobile phones.

This, Verizon has had a 5GB/mo cap for a long time.

 

[OBLAMA2009]

this isnt so much about throttling as as attempt at raising prices. they will gradually raise prices and decrease limits. five years from now well be paying per page like with land lines, that is verizons wet dream

 

[boomhower]

this isnt so much about throttling as as attempt at raising prices. they will gradually raise prices and decrease limits. five years from now well be paying per page like with land lines, that is verizons wet dream

It's not like raising prices at all. I would rather have a hard cap with overages. What this is is a policy to where they can literally do whatever they want. Think about it:

They don't say what 2% is. They just say 5% of all "data" users. That would include featurephones who use less than 100MB a month. The last study I saw last summer said the average Verizon smartphone user used 421MB's. I bet the top 5% of users is south of 2GB's.

What happens now? Well after being throttled for two, again nuts, months they are going to curb their usage. So now that is going to bring the top 5% to an even lower limit. This isn't a sustainable policy. Something has to give or eventually everyone is going to be throttled.

On another note, what exactly is throttled? 500kb/s, 300kb/s, 100kb/s, 50? It could be anything from reasonable to rendering your data connection essentially useless.

Why can't they just come out and make a reasonable policy? "If you exceed 5GB's of data usage in a billing period your connection will be throttled to 500kb/s for the duration of the billing cycle." There, plain and easy to understand. Still unlimited but with throttling. This shit ain't hard. Hard limits with clear consequences. But when you get a little big for your britches and think you can screw with the consumer this is what happens. People gave AT&T crap for the 2GB cap but at least they were open about it and not trying to be cryptic. I had fully intended on porting my two lines over from Sprint but that ain't happening until this mess is clarified. The wife is just going to have to wait on that iPhone.

 

[the DRIZZLE]

5% is going to catch way too many "power users". If they said that they were going to do this to the top 1 or 2% I'd be all for it, but this is really bs.

 

[destrekor]

This, Verizon has had a 5GB/mo cap for a long time.

No, they have not.

The only time there has been a 5gb cap is when you are paying for unlimited tethering.
They have also since changed the data plans and things are even more confusing, but nowhere does it state in any documentation for the $30/month Unlimited Data plan that there is a 5gb limit. And multiple parties have confirmed this at various sites online, including the Verizon forums.

Now, if you go over 5gb, they will likely scrutinize the data and check for any inconsistencies with your plan, as in... they'll attempt to determine if you are tethering without paying for the option to tether. But if they don't determine you are tethering, they let you continue.

 

[shortylickens]

I came in to post this after seeing it on Daily Tech.
http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=20827

Also, before I changed my habits I'm pretty sure I was in that top 5%. Now I got the 150mb a month for dirt cheap and all I do is check weather and email. I dont even do news any more cuz most of the mobile news sites are full of garbage or difficult to navigate. Mobile Reuters just changed their format and I hate it. And theres no option to see the old version.
Jerks.