FCC unhappy with Verizon

[Bob Of Burleson]

FCC tears down Verizon
data throttling defense,
eyes other carriers

By Nicole Arce, Tech Times

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is apparently not pleased with Verizon's "everybody does it" defense of its recent announcement to slow down data downloads for customers on grandfathered unlimited plans.

Last month, Verizon posted an announcement on its website that it plans to throttle data speeds for its top 5% of customers who have the heaviest data consumption beginning in October, noting that majority of Verizon's customers, who are mostly on tiered pricing plans with a data limit, will not be affected by the data slowdowns. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler, however, was "deeply troubled" by Verizon's plan, saying that the mobile carrier cannot use "reasonable network management" as an excuse to "enhance revenue streams" in a letter to Verizon's president and chief executive Dan Mead.

Verizon's response was prompt. In a letter written by Kathleen Grillo, senior vice president for federal regulatory affairs, Verizon cited data throttling policies by Sprint, AT&T and T-Mobile and said "such practices are widely used throughout the industry and have been widely accepted." AT&T and T-Mobile have long been slowing down their customers' data speeds to curb extravagant users and minimize network lagging for other customers. Sprint, on the other hand, joined the bandwagon earlier this year.

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