Latest AT&T Statement Does Little to Reassure Customers

AT&T has addressed the massive outcry over comments the company made last week.

Last Wednesday, Ralph de la Vega told investors at a USB conference in New York that it will give high bandwidth users incentives to "reduce or modify their usage" and that usage-based pricing for data is inevitable.

These comments resulted in enormous amounts of poor publicity for the company which included a fake (but almost real) protest, numerous blog postings, and the revelation that AT&T isn't spending as much on building their network as they would like you to think.


Now de la Vega is telling the WSJ that, "We have not made any decision to implement tiered pricing." This statement does little to reassure customers. AT&T could be meeting to make that decision tomorrow...

Mr. de la Vega declined to comment on what incentives AT&T will give customers to use less data; however, the WSJ notes that "the carrier is considering making more Wi-Fi hot spots free for its mobile customers, where they can access the Internet on a faster network than the cellphone network. It is also running trials of femtocells, boxes that use a home Internet connection and act as mini cellular towers."

For now it would seem that unlimited data access won't disappear. Analysts believe AT&T's iPhone exclusivity contract will be ending soon. If AT&T implements usage based fees for data the company will likely hemorrhage users at an unstoppable rate.

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