Your Unlimited Data Plan Will Be Throttled By AT&T – It Is Official

On Thursday AT&T will put limits on their Unlimited Data plan that slows speeds for 3G and 4G customers who exceed 3GB in a billing cycle and caps 4G LTE customers at 5GB. The carrier has explained the move on a support page, as it said: “you will still be able to use as much data as you want. That won’t change.”

Before that, AT&T had only slowed the speeds of customers who were in the top 5% of their respective markets, a practice known as throttling. Despite the fact, AT&T insists that 95% of smartphone users will not be throttled. As an AT&T rep says the cause of the change is that “customers had told us that more clarity would be helpful.”

People, who are affected, will receive a text message which explains that their usage is near 3GB (5GB for LTE users). Exceeding that threshold will lead in reduced data speeds, although you will still have the opportunity to email and surf the web. AT&T does not disclose how fast speeds will run for users who have been throttled.

As the carrier was citing the strain on its network wrought by data-hungry iPhones, it has begun throttling data for its top 5% of users last months. The practice was followed by Verizon then. As expected, the move has made riled many AT&T customers, citing the plan’s claim to “unlimited data.”

Despite the fact AT&T’s contract forbids such users from joining in a class-action suit, a person from California sued the company in small claims court last week and received a judgment worth $850.