You know how that Sprint HTC EVO 4G in your pocket is all about consuming data in 4G (if available in your area) like mobile data was going out of style? Well, it turns out Sprint has reserved the right to throttle your wireless data speeds. That means Sprint can limit the speed of your 3G or 4G data connection as they see fit, and it seems that the No. 3 US wireless carrier (by subscriber count) is getting ready to flex their throttling-muscles this summer.
While the move might make sense – the easiest way to alleviate a congested wireless data network is to simply limit the size of everyone’s data “pipe” – it does make us a little uncomfortable with the thought that Sprint can arbitrarily choke our data connection at will. How do we know? Well, it looks like Sprint’s “The Playbook” makes provisions for “Data Throttle.” In that document, Sprint says that the data throttling “functionality” will be rolled out “later this summer.” We have no idea if the data throttling plan will happen for sure, or if Sprint is just covering their bases, but either way it is worth talking about.
Carriers around the globe are coming to terms with the new reality of being a wireless carrier. Data will reign supreme and carriers will become little more than dumb pipes. Even voice calls will become nothing more than data transmissions in a couple years’ time. As such, these carriers need to make provisions to protect their data networks and make the most money they can from limited wireless spectrum. Like we said, Sprint’s data throttling plan makes sense.
But, how does data throttling sit with you, as the consumer? Would you pay more to avoid having your data speeds limited? Let us know below!
[Via: Engadget]