US carrier
T-Mobile and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
announced an agreement today that changes the way T-Mobile handles customers that go over their data caps in any given month. The FCC says T-Mobile will take steps to ensure customers are better informed about the reduced speeds, including providing accurate speed tests.
Currently, T-Mobile reduces data speeds to 64Kbps or 128Kbps once a customer hits their data cap rather than subject them with costly overage charges on some data plans. The carrier informs users via text message that they will witness reduced transfer speeds for the remainder of the billing cycle, but commonly-used testing tools often don't show evidence of a slowdown.
"With our Simple Choice Plan, once you have used all the 4G LTE data included in your plan, your data speed will automatically convert to up to 2G web speeds for the remainder of your billing cycle," says T-Mobile's
website. "At the beginning of your next billing cycle, you will start over with a new allotment of 4G LTE data. In contrast, our new Simple Starter plan includes up to 2GB of 4G LTE data."
Part of the problem with the current method is that when a customer runs a speed test to get an idea of the speeds they can reach, the reported speed is misleading. Speed tests report possible network speeds, instead of the throttled speeds those over their data caps experience. Network speed tests are exempted from data use on T-Mobile's network, much like select music streaming services.
Under the new agreement with the FCC that goes into effect in the next 60 days, T-Mobile will change the content of the text messages that go out to customers in order to give them more accurate information on the speed available. The carrier will also "make it clear" that some tests will represent the network speed, and not a customer's actual speed after going over a data cap.
T-Mobile will also provide a button on smartphones that links to a speed test to show the reduced speed, as well as including a speed test link in a text message. Lastly, T-Mobile agreed to change the disclosures on its website to indicate the speed test difference, and tell customers where an accurate reading can be obtained.
"The FCC is committed to ensuring that broadband providers are transparent to consumers. I'm grateful T-Mobile has worked with the FCC to ensure that its customers are better informed about the speeds they are experiencing," said FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. "Consumers need this information to fully understand what they are getting with their broadband service."
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