YouTube accuses T-Mobile of throttling video streaming

On Tuesday, YouTube, the world’s largest video-sharing service, pointed its finger at T-Mobile to accuse the carrier of throttling video streaming.

YouTube is claiming that T-Mobile is interfering with its video traffic, likely due to the introduction of Binge On. The carrier introduced Binge On in November as an initiative that alleviates customers’ hesitation to stream video and consume the capped amount of 4G LTE data allotted each month. The catch is that streams from partnering services are in a downgraded resolution. YouTube, though, is not an official partner of T-Mobile for Binge On. So it seems that YouTube believes the quality of streaming on T-Mobile’s network is downgraded without permission.

Here’s what a YouTube spokesperson had to say:

“Reducing data charges can be good for users, but it doesn’t justify throttling all video services, especially without explicit user consent.”

T-Mobile is saying that YouTube is not a partner for Binge On due to a technical problem. Apparently, T-Mobile cannot always detect YouTube as a video streaming service; however, the two parties are said to be working together on a solution.

John Legere, T-Mobile’s CEO, has not tweeted about the matter at the time of publishing. Either T-Mobile knows it’s guilty of something or Legere isn’t aware of YouTube’s accusation. But the carrier, despite not directly addressing YouTube’s accusation, told The Wall Street Journal that customers “love having free streaming video that never hits their data bucket.” Seems like T-Mobile is dodging the matter for now.

Things are rather confusing. Let’s wait and see how this one plays out in the coming days and weeks.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

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MetroPCS customers can now use their smartphones in Canada for just $5 per month

MetroPCS has today revealed that its customers are now able to use their smartphones in Canada for just $5 per month, which is great news as they no longer have to subscribe to the $10 a month World Calling scheme and the $5 monthly Value Bundle for international text messaging. Instead, they can pay a $5 flat fee to use their device just like they would in the US whilst on vacation.

Seeing as T-Mobile is the parent company of MetroPCS, it’s only natural for them to adopt the same policy for their customers. That’s why the wireless network operator also launched a new scheme which enables its subscribers to use their phones in both Canada and Mexico. However, unlike MetroPCS, T-Mo customers won’t have to pay extra to use their device abroad.

Source: T-Mobile

Come comment on this article: MetroPCS customers can now use their smartphones in Canada for just $5 per month

FCC wants providers to explain their data exemption schemes

FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler once called T-Mobile’s Binge On feature “highly innovative and highly competitive,” but it looks like things have changed since then. The agency has summoned not only T-Mobile, but also AT&T and Comcast to answer questions about their data cap exemption offerings, according to Ars Technica. For T-Mo, that service is Binge On, which allows subscribers of qualifying data plans to stream videos from select services such as Netflix, Hulu and HBO for free. AT&T’s Sponsored Data and Data Perks Program allows subscribers to stream content from sponsors without eating up their data allowance. Finally, Comcast has an add-on service for XFINITY internet subscribers called Stream TV, which is exempted from customers’ monthly data usage.

In the letter it sent each company, the FCC briefly explained the reason why they were being summoned for a discussion, though it all boils down to net neutrality. The agency told T-Mobile that some net neutrality advocates have expressed concerns over Binge On’s potential to harm innovation, as it makes “certain video apps more attractive to others.” It has a predetermined list of apps you can use for free, after all, and you can’t choose which ones to include in the service.

In the FCC’s letter to AT&T, it said that it wants to get all the facts from the companies themselves in order to understand “how these services relate to the Commission’s goal of maintaining a free and open internet.” And in the letter for Comcast, it said that Sling’s CEO raised “level playing field concerns,” and that others call Stream TV a new way to get around the FCC’s net neutrality guidelines. Wheeler told Ars, however, that this isn’t an official investigation, and the agency merely wants to stay informed about the companies’ practices. Either way, the three are expected to schedule a meeting with the commission by January 15th, 2016 at the latest.

Source: Ars Technica

Returning a phone to T-Mobile? This simple tip could save you a lot of time!

Have you recently purchased a device from T-Mobile that you’re looking to return? Well, T-Mobile has some requirements to take the phone back. Most of the requirements are common sense. It must be in good working order without damage, and you have to have the original box and everything inside of it. It has to be in the two week (14 days) return period.

They also ask you to have the original receipt, but I’ve had success without it. The good people there have been able to pull up my order and print another copy of the receipt for me. Not the biggest deal in the world, but if you’re walking into a store with a long line, they may not want to take out the time to perform this special step for you.

If you follow these simple steps, there’s a $50 restocking fee to return the device. If you paid anything out of pocket at the time of purchase, the $50 will be deducted from your refund. If you didn’t pay anything up front, like on a Jump on Demand lease, you’ll owe that $50. Tablets will get hit with a $75 restocking fee instead of the $50 fee on phones, so keep that in mind if you’ve picked up a cellular enabled tablet from T-Mobile.

Now, here’s where some may run into a problem. If you’re like me and have multiple devices on multiple lines, you HAVE to have the sim card for the line you’re returning a phone on. Here’s an example:

I recently picked up an LG V10 after Josh Noriega’s excellent review of the device. I definitely wanted to play with it for a few weeks and experience listening to HiFi music through Tidal with it. I’m not quite an audiophile, but I do appreciate high quality audio and the dedicated HiFi DAC in the V10 was a major selling point.

I have Jump on Demand set up on my wife’s line since at the time of purchase I was leasing an iPhone on my line. When I went to return the V10 today, in which I met all requirements I talked about above, I was asked for the sim card for the line so they could verify the return.

I’m not going to lie, I was a bit floored. No one has ever mentioned that I would need the sim card for that line. The T-Mobile employee at time of purchase went out of his way to let me know that if I returned the phone, which I had mentioned I might, that I’d need the box, accessories and the receipt. Nowhere on T-Mobile’s own “Return Policy” website does it state this.

As a logical person, I can understand why this sim card policy isn’t the first thing they tell me when I get ready to leave the store with my phone. It’s going to be a very rare case, but this is listed NOWHERE. T-Mobile is very aware that there of those of us that swap phones a lot which is why they have the Jump on Demand program. Letting us in on this apparently brand new requirement, especially when things are explicitly laid out like they were in my situation, isn’t the craziest of ideas.

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