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AT&T opens one door, and closes another

FaceTime has always been available to iPhone 4/4s customers when connected to a Wi-Fi network, but it wasn't until the beta releases of iOS 6 that Apple opened up that option to work over a cellular connection.
 
Now, AT&T is playing favorites by making sure that the only people that will be able to enjoy FaceTime over a cellular connection do so using the often more expensive Mobile Share data plans. That means that people that are on grandfathered unlimited plans, or just regular 2GB/4GB data plans are left out in the cold.
 
Those with Mobile Share data plans can use cellular FaceTime for free. However, customers using any other data plans can't get FaceTime over cellular at any price from AT&T (without switching to a qualifying Mobile Share data plan).
 
Here's a statement from AT&T on the matter:
 
AT&T will offer FaceTime over Cellular as an added benefit of our new Mobile Share data plans, which were created to meet customers' growing data needs at a great value. With Mobile Share, the more data you use, the more you save. FaceTime will continue to be available over Wi-Fi for all our customers.
 
It's mind boggling that AT&T would limit customers in this way. Shouldn't customers have the right to use the data they pay for however they choose? What’s even more concerning is that video chat apps like Skype can be installed on an iPhone from the App Store and used over a cellular connection with nary a peep from AT&T.
 
Regardless of what's "officially" available from AT&T, those that are hell-bent on gaining access to FaceTime over a cellular connection can always go the jailbreak route. There are plenty of apps available that restore the functionality that AT&T wants to restrict.

Source: Ars Technica


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RE: Why does ANYONE pay lots of money for AT&T?
By corduroygt on 8/18/2012 11:46:56 AM , Rating: 3
quote:
It's not the same coverage if you want to count that as part of the definition of 'network'. Like most MVNOs, Straight talk is limited solely to AT&T's network itself. This may work fine for some people, but you are actually getting something by going with a real carrier and not an MVNO.


AT&T is also limited to AT&T's network itself since you don't have mainstream equipment that can work with GSM and CDMA simultaneously, so I don't get what you're talking about here. Your GSM phone won't work on Verizon regardless of what roaming agreements they have.

Plus you can choose between AT&T,T-mobile,Verizon and Sprint with Straight Talk.


RE: Why does ANYONE pay lots of money for AT&T?
By MadMan007 on 8/18/2012 1:23:44 PM , Rating: 2
Compare AT&T's post-paid coverage map with an AT&T MVNO coverage map like Straight Talk and you'll see what I mean.


By corduroygt on 8/18/2012 8:19:11 PM , Rating: 2
That coverage map is meaningless without the appropriate hardware. For all equipment that's GSM only, you don't get to enjoy any Verizon and Sprint coverage with AT&T.
Besides given that 80% of your driving is within 40 miles of your average home, ST would suit most folks just fine.


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