Unlimited data plans for India are a fantasy as yet but Europe and USA are galore with them. They have recently drawn much ire due to the throttling done by AT & T and Sprint to save costs.
In all reality, they might just be a distant reality and never even make a mark here. But, then we are we discussing it? Here’s why its relevant to us. All of us would love to get the perfect tariff plan. But hardly ever succeed. See, every plan is rigged by mobile networks to present them with an advantage and here’s the tragedy that happened with these consumers. This is a case study in what really happens between the mobile networks and the consumers.
First, lets take a look at AT & T’s ill-fated consumers. These consumers were promised unlimited surfing on their phones. But, after signing up for an expensive plan that would have guaranteed them unlimited data usage, the networks started throttling consumers as soon as they crossed 2 GB usage. Despite repeated complaints, AT & T failed to improve bandwidth.
Throttling is a cheap trick that mobile networks use to make you to switch on to a plan different from your current one, making them a ton of money in the process. It happens in India too. In case your phone’s tariff plan is costing you a lot more than you anticipated or you have connectivity issues, you might have been throttled. Mobile networks have so many hidden clauses and so many ways to skim off your hard earned money that TRAI has recently even issued guidelines, which every mobile network needs to adhere.
But the pain of a consumer actually has no end when it comes to networks. Speaking from personal experience, I have an Airtel connection and there have been so many times that I have had some services activated on my phone, that I did not want in the first place. I am not singularly blaming Airtel. Even networks such as Vodafone and Idea indulge in such cheap gimmicks and there is no escape from them, no matter what network you use.
Mobile networks, in my view need to wake up before its too late. Throttling or playing cheap tricks is totally unjustified and unethical. Don’t you think the same? Let us know.