AT&T Reverses FaceTime Over Cellular Decision (Partially)

 FREDDY NOVEMBER 8, 2012

This August, many AT&T customers were disappointed when it was announced that the carrier planned to charge people who wanted to use FaceTime over cellular data on iOS 6, when they stated that it would require a shared data plan. However, AT&T announced today in a press release that this was not the case:

“AT&T today announced it will enable FaceTime over Cellular at no extra charge for iOS 6 customers with an LTE device on any tiered data plan. AT&T will also continue to offer FaceTime over Cellular to customers with any AT&T Mobile Share plan, as well as FaceTime over Wi-Fi, which has always been available for all customers. AT&T expects to roll out this functionality to customers over the next eight to ten weeks.

As part of its commitment to serving customers with disabilities, AT&T is also making FaceTime over Cellular available to deaf and hard of hearing customers who qualify for special text and data-only packages.”

While this announcement is not a complete reversal, it does calm many peoples’ worries. The main drawback is that this new policy will only apply to people with LTE devices, so pre-iPhone 5 customers are out of luck. Additionally, if any of you have a grandfathered-in unlimited data plan, it seems you are out of luck as well.

It seems as though AT&T is attempting to appease their customers, but is not quite willing to let go of charging users based on how they use their data, which is pretty ridiculous. After all, you pay for a set amount of data, so why should it be up to AT&T how you use it. Hopefully, if there is enough customer outcry, we will see AT&T take another step back in their attempt to control the usage of their data.