Report notes Sprint slashes data speed throttling on unlimited plans tied to FCC net neutrality rules
Sprint has told the Federal Communications Commission it has stopped throttling data speeds for consumers on “unlimited” data plans.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Sprint late last week stopped limiting network speeds of its customers on unlimited data plans inline with the adoption of the FCC’s net neutrality rules. The report noted Sprint made the move despite claims it did not think the practice violated tenants of net neutrality rules.
“Sprint doesn’t expect users to notice any significant difference in their services now that we no longer engage in the process,” a Sprint spokesman told The Wall Street Journal.
Sprint has been a long-time proponent of unlimited data services, with various executives touting the marketing benefits of the offer as well as the network’s ability to handle the load.
Sprint had come out in favor of the FCC’s net neutrality actions, noting earlier this year “balanced net neutrality rules with a light regulatory touch will benefit consumers while fostering mobile broadband competition, investment and innovation in the United States.”
Reports on the move come on the heels of the FCC announcing a $100 million fine against AT&T for throttling data speeds of its unlimited data customers.
T-Mobile US late last year announced an agreement with the FCC to provide more transparency to consumers who have their mobile data speeds throttled. The agreement followed FCC claims that T-Mobile US customers are able to access speed-testing applications that only show the unthrottled network speeds being offered by the carrier and not the true network speed to which a customer is being throttled. T-Mobile US customers have their network access speeds throttled to either 128 kilobits per second or 64 kbps depending on their rate plan, once they empty their allotted data bucket. Those customers will now be provided with access to network speed tests that show their current network speed.
Verizon Wireless late last year also pulled plans for a “network optimization” program across its LTE network that would have limited network speeds for customers with “unlimited” data plans in some instances. The carrier installed a similar program on its CDMA-based 3G network.
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