Sign This Petition to Prevent AT&T From Restricting FaceTime Over 3G

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Posted August 21, 2012 at 9:43pm by iClarified

A petition has been started that asks the FCC to prevent AT&T from forcing users onto a more expensive data plan to use FaceTime over 3G.

Free Press started the petition and the letter reads:

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Dear FCC Commissioners,

AT&T just announced it's blocking the FaceTime video calling app on its customers' iPhones unless they subscribe to a more expensive text-and-voice plan.

This is a clear violation of Net Neutrality and of your own Open Internet rules. AT&T knows that if it can get the FCC to condone this kind of Net Neutrality violation, then they can get away with just about anything.

I urge you to put a stop to AT&T's anti-consumer and anti-Net Neutrality actions.
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John Bergmayer, Senior Staff Attorney at Public Knowledge says, "By blocking FaceTime for many of its customers, AT&T is violating the FCC's Open Internet rules. These rules state that mobile providers shall not 'block applications that compete with the provider's voice or video telephony services.' Although carriers are permitted to engage in 'reasonable network management,' there is no technical reason why one data plan should be able to access FaceTime, and another not.

"'Over-the-top' communications services like FaceTime are a threat to carriers' revenue, but they should respond by competing with these services and not by engaging in discriminatory behavior."

Please sign the petition at the link below...

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Sign This Petition to Prevent AT&T From Restricting FaceTime Over 3G

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digitalguy - September 20, 2012 at 11:48pm

type this in browser to sign and send this to as many people as you can http://act.freepress.net/sign/facetime

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Ali - August 23, 2012 at 1:28am

How do i sign this

TTTony - August 22, 2012 at 6:18pm

Just jailbreak your phone and be done with this ordeal

danka - August 23, 2012 at 2:36pm

yup...My3G works for me...beats hours of elevating the issue with the top tiered reps at ATT

danka - August 22, 2012 at 2:21pm

I am hearing impaired and so far the TAP program which allowed deaf and hearing iPhone users to use Facetime over the AT&T cellular network for the past 2 + years has been pulled. This is not only unethical but illegal under the Disability Act.

tdtran1025 - August 22, 2012 at 1:30am

Ok, here is a watered down version of ShutUpFools. If carriers spent billions of dollars to buy frequencies from FCC, do you think they will give it to you for free? Even you have to pay for DSL every month to enjoy WiFi in your home, right? Apple, the maker of FaceTime app, by a new proposal from the industries, should negotiate with carriers to foot the bill. Give the consumers freedom, they surely will use or abuse it.

53f4db4 - August 22, 2012 at 1:04am

According to the below article dated July 24, 2012, AT&T had its most profitable quarter ever, mainly attributed to increased smartphone use. So maintaining a profit is not an issue, and apparently your the tard. The issue is why are these profits not being reinvested adequately to update the infrastructure to meet the demands of its customers, as well as provide the level of service marketed by AT&T? They would rather throttle so called 'Unlimited' data plans and limit services such as FaceTime in an attempt to bully people into signing up for more expensive data plans. If AT&T's infrastructure cannot handle the demands of a device they are selling, then they should stop selling the iPhone. "AT&T Gets a Boost From Increased Smartphone Use By THOMAS GRYTA AT&T Inc.'s T -0.81% second-quarter profit rose 8.7%, as the company's wireless division reported its most profitable quarter ever, benefiting from the increased use of smartphones. Like rival Verizon Wireless, AT&T said a majority of its wireless customers under contract now own a smartphone. This trend has led to higher revenue from data usage and stickier mobile customers for the carriers, which are now changing the plans price structures to better leverage profits from users of mobile devices. In the second quarter, AT&T said its wireless service margins rose to 30.3% from 26.9% a year ago; its revenue from wireless data increased 19% to $6.4 billion; and the rate at which customers leave its network, a measurement known as churn, fell to 0.97% from 1.15% last year. "Almost all the upside in their earnings was driven by the wireless division," said Deutsche Bank analyst Brett Feldman, who cited the drop in phone upgrades. "They are doing a better job of selling smartphones to customers where they are going to benefit from that sale." Overall, the company reported a profit of $3.9 billion, or 66 cents a share, up from $3.59 billion, or 60 cents, a year earlier. Revenue edged up 0.3% to $31.58 billion; wireless revenue rose 4.8% to $16.35 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had forecast earnings of 63 cents a share on total revenue of $31.7 billion. "All in all, it was a very positive quarter which puts us in a great position heading into the second half of the year," Chief Financial Officer John Stephens said in a conference call Tuesday. AT&T shares, which have been trading near multiyear highs, recently dropped 2.3% to $34.56. In the latest period, AT&T added 320,000 customers who signed long-term service contracts, compared with 331,000 additions a year earlier. The increase was better than analysts expected--which was a rise of 224,000, according to Deutsche Bankand reflected the company's improvement in keeping customers. AT&T noted that 88% of customers are on either family or business plans, something that can make it more burdensome for customers to switch carriers. The wireless division's highest-ever margins was driven by lower costs, fewer costly phone upgrades and the growing base of smartphones. AT&T said 62% of postpaid subscribers owning one at the end of the quarter, up from 50% a year ago. AT&T also noted that a record low 6% of postpaid customers upgraded their phone in the quarter, something that helps profitability as smartphones are heavily subsidized by carriers. In an interview, Mr. Stephens cited stricter upgrade policies, put in place earlier this year, as being responsible but conceded that customers may be waiting for purchases later this year. Apple Inc's new iPhone is expected to be released in the fall. Despite losing its exclusive status as iPhone selling, AT&T still depends on the device. In the quarter, AT&T activated 3.7 million iPhones, or about 73% of its total smartphones. Indeed, Mr. Stephens noted that the company still expects to sell 25 million smartphones for 2012. Based on the 10.6 million sold in the first half, overall sales of the devices should accelerate and iPhone launches often provide a boost for the company. In the fourth quarter of last year, the company sold 9.4 million smartphones. But there is more competition as Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel Corp. now both offer the iPhone. Despite AT&T activating more than 9 million iPhones in the second half of 2010with two-year contactsMr. Stephens contends that "many" of those customers have already upgraded and renewed their contracts. Mr. Stephens said the company will continue to evaluate share repurchases after spending $4.6 billion this year, putting the company about halfway through its authorization for buybacks. He said that AT&T is watching the regulatory review of Verizon Wireless' effort to buy unused wireless spectrum from a group of cable companies for $3.9 billion. As part of that deal, Verizon would sell a block of spectrum and analysts largely expect AT&T to bid aggressively. "If it is good spectrum and we can use (it), I'm sure we would be interested," Mr. Stephens said. He said that an ongoing review of several of AT&T's businesses, including its rural access line unit, is continuing. Chief Executive Randall Stephenson hinted earlier this year that selling the unit would prove complex because of myriad of regulatory clearances needed. AT&T's revenue in the traditional wireline business dropped 0.8% to $14.9 billion. In May, AT&T sold a majority stake in its Yellow Pages business to private-equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP for $950 million. The partial-quarter inclusion of the operations created a drag; excluding the business, total revenue in the second-quarter revenue rose 2%." Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443570904577546622104067712.html

Alan Levenson - August 22, 2012 at 8:54pm

Don't do it!

justabrake - August 21, 2012 at 11:23pm

anyone who signs this partition will have data slowdowns yours truly AT&T

Thatcher - August 21, 2012 at 10:56pm

I'm so glad we get to choose from a whole bunch of providers in the UK, the competition is fierce and that drives down the price for the consumers. From what i can tell AT&T really sucks when it comes to their customers.

Darryn - August 22, 2012 at 1:50pm

No need to be so rude. I live is South Africa and we don't even have unlimited plans. We have to get a certain data bundle. As soon as that is finished, you have to buy more. No unlimited plans whatsoever. So hearing from a Brit, now I know how the competition is in the UK. And in SA we have a few competitors. But non of them offer an unlimited data plan. Not a single one.

Jajaja - August 21, 2012 at 10:20pm

Yup, I remember the last time a petition worked...wait, shit.