For the past year, maybe two, AT&T has been railing against unlimited data plans. It still offered them, of course, because it knew the consequences of going against the grain. The iPhone, seemingly the most popular smartphone in America even though the BlackBerry Curve consistently outsold it, ran on heavy data consumption, so to reduce data usage would be to hurt AT&T’s market position. There might have also been pressure from Apple to keep the unlimited gates open. Whatever the reason, AT&T didn’t like it, and they made it clear in public statement after public statement. The world will soon have to get used to limits, the company constantly told its consumers.
Today, however, AT&T finally realized its dream. They announced tiered data pricing that seem kind skimpy. That’s the idea, of course. They want to reduce data consumption and free up bandwidth for more users. Or, at the very least, collect fees from the heaviest data consumers that will keep its profit sheet sparkling. Pardon the cynicism, but this tiered pricing deal is a clear play by AT&T to charge more for the same service. The announcement will keep investors happy — investors love it when you can disguise a price hike — but unless other carriers act in unison, customers might turn away from AT&T.
The lowest tier is a joke, a bone to light users who probably don’t need a smartphone in the first place. It includes just 200MB, which is a jokingly small amount. In fact, the best use of this low tier plan is to use when you’re going on vacation or otherwise won’t be using your smartphone much in that given month. That’s the one plus: AT&T will allow you to migrate between the plans on a month-by-month basis. You have to choose beforehand, of course, but if you plan on not using data for a month, you can avoid the extra $10.
Next up is what AT&T is calling “DataPro,” but what is really a stripped down version of its previous plan. It covers just 2GB, again not much for heavy users, and costs just $5 less than the unlimited plan. Again, this is a clear marketing ploy. There’s a price reduction, which AT&T will tout and tout. But it’s just $5 per month — it’s more than the unlimited data plan the company sold with the original iPhone. You can add tethering for $20 per month, with which you will surely exceed the 2GB limit. For that, AT&T will just charge $10 for an additional gig. Of course, if you go over by even a meg you have to pay for that whole gig. But that’s the plan, really.
AT&T is pulling its usual justification for this. “Currently, 98 percent of AT&T smartphone customers use less than 2GB of data a month on average.” First, I’m not sure how many of AT&T’s 90-some-odd-million subscribers are on smartphones, so it’s tough to get a real gauge of two percent. The problem, however, does not lie in the sheer numbers. It lies in the nature of those who use more than 2GB. I use more than 2GB. I’m sure many readers of this site use 2GB. Why do we use more data than 98 percent of AT&T smartphone customers? Because we’re doing something productive with our smartphones.
People who use data heavily often innovate. Sure, there are some who eat up bandwidth watching web video, but that constitutes far less than the two percent figure AT&T quotes. Most people I know who consume more than 2G of data are busy creating something. Those two percent of customers, in other words, are creating value. AT&T, apparently, wants to charge more for this value creation. That’s my biggest problem with the price hike. They’re trying to demonize heavy users, when the heavy users are creating things. The other 98 percent are merely consuming.
Which, as I feel like I’ve said a thousand times, is the entire point. AT&T doesn’t care about your innovation. It cares about its profits and feeding its investors. That means consumption, and charging heavily for it. Sorry, Android users, but you’re better off bolting for another carrier. That is, until their investors decide that AT&T is right.
