An Early Net-Neutrality Win: Rules Prompt Sprint to Stop Throttling

By Thomas Gryta 

The Federal Communications Commission's new net-neutrality rules are already having an effect.

Sprint, the third-largest U.S. wireless carrier, had been intermittently choking off data speeds for its heaviest wireless Internet users when its network was clogged. But it stopped on Friday, when the government's new net-neutrality rules went into effect.

The rules, unlike prior attempts by the commission to ensure Internet traffic isn't blocked or slowed, cover wireless networks like Sprint's for the first time. That raises the stakes for carriers, whose past policies could in theory run afoul of newly vigilant regulators.

Sprint said it believes its policy would have been allowed under the rules, but dropped it just in case.

"Sprint doesn't expect users to notice any significant difference in their services now that we no longer engage in the process," a Sprint spokesman said.

The company also had reserved the right to prioritize data traffic depending on a subscriber's plan. It had never done so, but has now decided the policy isn't needed.

Sprint's changes came days before the FCC said Wednesday that it plans to fine AT&T Inc. $100 million for allegedly misleading customers about unlimited wireless data plans. The FCC alleges AT&T sold consumers data plans advertised as unlimited, then capped data speeds after they used 5 gigabytes of data in a billing period.

The carrier says it did nothing wrong and will vigorously dispute the allegations.

AT&T and Verizon Communications Inc. stopped offering unlimited plans to new subscribers years ago, but T-Mobile and Sprint still sell them. T-Mobile doesn't have a policy of throttling customers other than in extreme circumstances for network management, a spokeswoman said.

Verizon moved to throttle some unlimited users last year as well, but dropped the effort under pressure from the FCC.

Write to Thomas Gryta at [e-mail]

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