AT&T Has Started Removing Unlimited Plans For Jailbroken Tethering

[Maura]

9to5 Mac reports today that it has heard from some of its readers that AT&T is going ahead with plans that it announced earlier in the year to remove unlimited data plans from those of its customers who use jailbroken iPhones to tether off the back of their unlimited data plan. According to one of their readers, he or she was told by AT&T that from Thursday, August 11, anyone using MyWi or any other tethering on their iPhone, or using the phone as a modem, will have their unlimited data plan switched to a 2GB tethering plan, at a cost of $45 per month. The customer will have no say in this matter, and it will be done automatically. 9to5 Mac says that they have also had this independently confirmed to them by an AT&T spokesperson, although not the August 11 date. Here’s the text of that confirmation from AT&T in full, which makes things pretty clear:

Earlier this year, we began sending letters, emails, and text messages to a small number of smartphone customers who use their devices for tethering but aren’t on our required tethering plan. Our goal here is fairness for all of our customers. (This impacts a only small percentage of our smartphone customer base.)
The letters outline three choices:
1) Stop tethering and keep their current plan (including grandfathered unlimited plan).
2) Proactively call AT&T or visit our stores and move to the required tethering plan.
3) Do nothing and we’ll go ahead and add the tethering plan on their behalf — after the dated noted in their customer notification.

Source: Jailbreak hotspot-ers: AT&T is moving you to a tiered data plan involuntarily | 9to5Mac | Apple Intelligence

 

[Ncaissie]

Pathetic. These company's need to be governed. They are bleeding us dry.

64GB 3G White iPad

 

[thewitt]

Governed? No one requires you to own the product. There are plenty of other free market alternatives. Please, don't ask the government to get involved unless you want Apple and AT&T both to go out of business.

-t

 

[USBill]

The government getting involved in 1974 and breaking up ATTs monopoly doesn't seem to have killed the company. Nor has legal action against Microsoft in Europe put them out of business there.

Just sayin'

 

[thewitt]

You want the government to regulate the behavior of private companies in an open market so you can steal their network bandwidth? Really?

-t

 

[SweetPoison]

How do they know you are JB?

 

[Tim SPRACKLEN]

How do they know you are JB?

Most developers look for a process called 'sbsettingsd' running on the iPad.

Tim

 

[SweetPoison]

I have SB Settings. So they are actually going to look at your iPad?

I'm not gettin it, am I?

 

[Tim SPRACKLEN]

A program running in the iPad can see the 'processes' that are running on that iPad. If you have SB Settings on your JB iPad, as most JB people do, then that 'sbsettingsd' process will be running. That process is absent on a non-JB iPad. So a developer simply has some code in his/her app to check if sbsettingsd is running. If it is, it's a JB iPad for sure. And then they tell you nasty things...

Tim

 

[thewitt]

We use half a dozen different techniques to test whether or not we are running on a jb iPad... It's pretty simple to do.

From an application standpoint deciding what action to take, if any, is the interesting step. Those applications presenting content that has restrictive licensing need to be sure they are complying with their license agreements. We developed one of these apps and we do not serve content to the UDID of a jb device, even if you revert back to a non-jb device. This was a requirement of the customer...

-t

 

[jrcrewe]

Swim in their pool. Play by their rules.

JC

 

[LawPad2]

With three daughters and constant upgrades, I'm suck in their pool for the next 437 years. Oh well....

 

[Ncaissie]

In Canada we basically have 2 choices. So they gouge us to death. I'm sick and tired of the monopoly. All the little companies that use their networks are being capped as well. So yes if this crap happens in Canada I want the gov to step in. The gov is the voice of the people so you shouldn't be afraid of them stepping in on monopolies. They are there to protect us.

64GB 3G White iPad

 

[dlo]

Interesting to know considering a BestBuy employee just told me this earlier today. I think it's ridiculous how they're trying to control how people are able to use the service that we already pay for.

I can see what people are going to say in response to my post, but then at the same time that's just my point of view.

 

[thewitt]

Verizon just announced a similar program to stop jb tethering.

-t