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AT&T to try limits on monthly Internet traffic


Redneck4sure

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Comcast tested limits about a yr ago and now AT&T is testing it with their dsl. Comcast limits are far higher than AT&T. At least I am not under a contract so I may have to change providers. I have had AT&T dsl ever since it became available in my area which was not many months after it first came out anywhere but they are about to run me off. Joe do you still have AT&T?

Here is the article:

NEW YORK – AT&T Inc., the country's largest Internet service provider, is testing the idea of limiting the amount of data that subscribers can use each month.

AT&T will initially apply the limits in Reno, Nev., and see about extending the practice elsewhere.

Increasingly, Internet providers across the country are placing such limits on the amount of data users can upload and download each month, as a way to curb a small number of "bandwidth hogs" who use a lot of the network capacity. For instance, 5 percent of AT&T's subscribers take up 50 percent of the capacity, spokesman Michael Coe said Tuesday.

But the restrictions that Internet providers are setting are tentative. And the companies differ on what limits to set and whether to charge users for going beyond the caps.

Starting in November, AT&T will limit downloads to 20 gigabytes per month for users of their slowest DSL service, at 768 kilobits per second. The limit increases with the speed of the plan, up to 150 gigabytes per month at the 10 megabits-per-second level.

The rest of the article is >>>here<<<

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Their suggested caps aren't bad. On the other hand, a cap would go against the trend of more people watching tv shows and videos on the web. It's a dumb move.

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Their suggested caps aren't bad.

Rapidshare cut their bandwidth also so I kept track of it for 21 days. I downloaded 77 gigs in 21 days. That does not include bandwidth used to open email, surf, youtube, pay bills, update programs or what my wife uses. Let's say that we use 150gigs a month and that is a conservative estimate. I may be closer to 200gigs. I have been paying $30=150gigs for my 3meg connection. Now $30=60gigs plus $90=90gigs so I can get the same service soon for $120=150gigs. If I do hit the 200gig mark, my bill will be $170.

Yes, I am one of the "Bandwidth Hogs". If they cap your usage, that is one thing. I don't mind paying extra but $1 per gig is crazy. Comcast gives up to 250gigs for 50 or 60 bucks a month. AT&T would cost $220 if you used 250gigs. Last time I checked I couldn't get cable here. DSL is all I can get. Actually, it is adsl. The upload doesn't match the download, hence the "a" for assymetrical in front of the dsl.

I think people will be surprised to see what their actual usage is. I believe most people would estimate their usage at half or less than what it is. It's the same way with your water bill. When you look at the monthly total in gallons/litres for 30 days and figure what the daily average is you wonder where all that water went.

People that don't stream video or audio and don't download music or movies will have all the bandwidth they need. That is the majority of people. Most of the older folks I know don't mess with audio or video over the net in any fashion. Several people at work have gotten notices from Comcast about being over the 250gig limit. Everyone that has the option to get Verizon fios has done so. It is not available at this address since Verizon doesn't serve this part of Dallas.

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Yup, still have AT&T. Have the 6 meg DSL Elite. So far, this hasn't started here.

It's coming in less than a yr.

I have the 3meg dsl pro. I check on the Elite a few times a year but it wasn't available at my house.

...until today! :lol:

I signed up for the upgrade a few hours ago. After I signed up the website says I will get the faster speed in "3 to 5 working days". Before I signed up it said "faster speed in 3 days". Slight difference (fraud?) in the time frame.

I may get a second telephone land line put in the house so I can have 2 dsl accounts. With 2 Elite accounts I may not go over the cap. The cap on the 3meg is 60gig. The cap on the 10meg is 150gig so what will the cap be on the 6meg? I'm guessing 100gig. Basically I would pay $35 times 2 plus the cost of another line with NO features. I would have 12 meg bandwidth on multiple simultaneous downloads for around $70 more than I am paying now as long as I don't over 200gigs a month and keep the two accounts balanced. If I can get cable by the time AT&T caps my service, AT&T can kiss my Jurassic ass. There are houses being built in the areas around my house so I may be able to get cable now. I haven't checked in a few months and I am not going to check until AT&T caps my service. The reason I wanted cable was to get off this 3meg service. Now that I will soon be on 6meg I am not going to change for the difference in speed. Cable is quite a bit more and the speed is 8megs around here. Your area may be different speeds, I don't know. I know I'm not going to sign a contract for at least a year, drill holes in the house, run coax and mess with changing over to cable at 8megs when dsl is 6megs and at least $20 cheaper. I don't mind the money difference as much as I do the hassle. But as long as dsl is a little cheaper and a little slower I don't feel ripped off. If dsl was the same price as cable I would change because I would feel like I was being ripped off. I'd pay 50 bucks to avoid being ripped off 20. Ya know what I mean? :lol:

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I have no idea. I d/l albums and a very few music vids. I have some documentaries from BBC, National Geographic, Nova, Discovery, History Channel and so forth (No Michael Moore type propaganda films lol). All my vids add up to about 200gigs. It's the music that is eating up my bandwidth. My wife streams lots of vids and music.

Comcast with a 250gig limit may work out for me.

The problem is that file size increases with quality. People used to post mp3 only pretty much. Now I get lots of flac, ape and I am getting increasingly more wav files. The same number of albums takes up twice as much or more bandwidth than a couple of years ago. I guess that is what the internet providers are up against. Faster connections, cheaper and much larger hard drives mean an exponentially higher bandwidth use.

It breaks my heart but I gotta go......

....I see some more lossless albums I need to download. :lol:

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