AT&T has announced its "Sponsored Data" plan for 4G customers, offering eligible subscribers a sort of free access to more content that will be paid by brands willing to shoulder the cost just to reach potential customers. While the proposal seems to be a win-win situation for consumers, there are worries expressed from all directions that such move will destroy competition and Internet neutrality.
AT&T says that both its customers and businesses will benefit from its Sponsored Data offering. "With the new Sponsored Data service, data charges resulting from eligible uses will be billed directly to the sponsoring company; the customer simply enjoys their content via AT&T's wireless data network. Customers will see the service offered as AT&T Sponsored Data, and the usage will appear on their monthly invoice as Sponsored Data. Sponsored Data will be delivered at the same speed and performance as any non-Sponsored Data content," AT&T said. However, not everybody's happy.
During a session at the CES 2014 on Jan. 8, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Tom Wheeler expressed his concerns about AT&T's new program.
"My attitude is: let's take a look at what this is, let's take a look at how it operates. And be sure, that if it interferes with the operation of the internet; that if it develops into an anticompetitive practice; that if it does have some kind of preferential treatment given somewhere, then that is cause for us to intervene," Wheeler said.
While Sponsored Data will let subscribers consume more content without having to worry about their monthly bill, small content providers who cannot pay AT&T as much as their bigger rivals will end up not getting the exposure they need.
As for consumers, they might enjoy the extra content they can access but of course businesses can find a way to pass their cost to consumers. Unknowing subscribers might also be blinded by the sponsored content and miss better offers from smaller businesses.
T-Mobile CEO John Legere has also slammed the idea of bypassing the data cap by letting content providers pay for them, during his speech at CES 2014. Legere referred to AT&T as a "total source of amusement..." and compared the recent announcement of the rival to his company's unlimited data plans.
