I'm a smartphone customer with an unlimited data plan and received a message that you might reduce my speeds if my data usage in a billing period is among the top five percent of all smartphone customers. What does that mean?
Like other wireless companies, we're taking steps to manage exploding demand for mobile data. Many experts agree the country is facing a serious wireless spectrum crunch. We're responding on many levels, including investing billions in our wireless network this year and working to acquire additional network capacity. We're also taking additional, more immediate measures to help address network congestion.
One new measure is to reduce the data throughput speed experienced by a small minority of smartphone customers who are still on unlimited data plans. These customers represent only five percent of our smartphone data customers but they use an extraordinary amount of data each month. On average, they use about 12 times more data than the average of all other smartphone data customers.
How much monthly data usage is typical for someone in the top five percent of smartphone customers?
Data consumption by all customers, including the top five percent of smartphone data customers, varies by month and by market. As of August 2011, the average data use across the country by the top five percent of AT&T smartphone customers was 2GB per month.
Typically what puts someone in the top five percent is streaming very large amounts of video and music daily over the wireless network, not Wi-Fi. Streaming video apps, remote web camera apps, sending large data files (like video) and some online gaming are examples of applications that can use data quickly. Using Wi-Fi doesn't create wireless network congestion or count toward your wireless data usage, and can reduce the likelihood that you will be in the top five percent. AT&T smartphone customers have unlimited access to our entire Wi-Fi network, with more than 27,000 hotspots, at no additional cost. They can also use Wi-Fi at home and in the office.
To take it to extreems at this rate eventually ATT will say that if you use 200mb you are in the top 5 %, what a crock!
Found on ATT website under an unlimited data question area
http://www.att.com/esupport/main.jsp?ct=5900004&pv=2&cv=820
Like other wireless companies, we're taking steps to manage exploding demand for mobile data. Many experts agree the country is facing a serious wireless spectrum crunch. We're responding on many levels, including investing billions in our wireless network this year and working to acquire additional network capacity. We're also taking additional, more immediate measures to help address network congestion.
One new measure is to reduce the data throughput speed experienced by a small minority of smartphone customers who are still on unlimited data plans. These customers represent only five percent of our smartphone data customers but they use an extraordinary amount of data each month. On average, they use about 12 times more data than the average of all other smartphone data customers.
How much monthly data usage is typical for someone in the top five percent of smartphone customers?
Data consumption by all customers, including the top five percent of smartphone data customers, varies by month and by market. As of August 2011, the average data use across the country by the top five percent of AT&T smartphone customers was 2GB per month.
Typically what puts someone in the top five percent is streaming very large amounts of video and music daily over the wireless network, not Wi-Fi. Streaming video apps, remote web camera apps, sending large data files (like video) and some online gaming are examples of applications that can use data quickly. Using Wi-Fi doesn't create wireless network congestion or count toward your wireless data usage, and can reduce the likelihood that you will be in the top five percent. AT&T smartphone customers have unlimited access to our entire Wi-Fi network, with more than 27,000 hotspots, at no additional cost. They can also use Wi-Fi at home and in the office.
To take it to extreems at this rate eventually ATT will say that if you use 200mb you are in the top 5 %, what a crock!
Found on ATT website under an unlimited data question area
http://www.att.com/esupport/main.jsp?ct=5900004&pv=2&cv=820
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, and so basically I wont get my speed back until the next billing cycle? 
