I think John Gruber has an excellent analysis up of the new pricing plans coming out of AT&T.
http://daringfireball.net/2010/06/good_and_bad_regarding_att_data_plans
AT&T’s decision to charge more for tethering without giving more bandwidth is unsustainable and it should be called a “$20 bullshit fee” just as Gruber suggests. The market will demand a fix to the $20 bullshit fee by hacking tethering in like they do already or going to a different vendor. MiFi from Sprint or Verizon is attractive though it costs more because it can be used on multiple devices. Data is data, and charging more for using more makes sense; giving a discount to those who use less makes sense; charging for the ability to do something we can already do makes no sense and is unforgivable.
Lower prices for a little less data usage will be attractive to many customers, and should be attractive to most except that many just don’t want to think about it.
For me, this will likely save money (still doing the analysis of data usage habits).
AT&T and all the other providers are still evil, but the market is slowly forcing them to be a little less evil each day.
{ 3 } Comments
Login to ATT website first and then visit https://www.att.com/view/analytics.do?reportType=dataUsageTrend (unfortunately their website is not smart enough to log you in and then take you to the URL you initially came for)
You dont need to do analysis – they do it for you. Lots of awesome graphs.
I am really happy with what ATT is doing.
No, that article is the actual nonsense. I recommend you please read this. http://www.radioworld.com/article/86420
Kris, Frank McCoy’s article is an interesting read if you are looking forward to ways to replace broadcast radio and the problems that may entail… and I can’t refute his arguments… However it has absolutely NOTHING to do with the data service plan issues most of us are having with our broadband and wireless data plan providers.
I am not looking for FM quality music to be streamed over my phone or computer. I prefer my own music, as do most people.
What I do want is reliably quick traffic updates on my google maps, information on nearby restaurants, or location on those friends who chose to share that with me. None of those things is addressed in the article you site.
Bandwidth for interactive application is limited, and I have no problem paying for the bits I use. Having “unlimited” pricing plans is unsustainable, and Gruber’s article gets it the way the old radio guy completely misses.
Post a Comment