As we all know, ‘unlimited’ doesn’t really mean ‘unlimited’ when it comes to wireless plans. There are so many catches and exceptions that we just hope that the restrictions don’t kick in until later in the month. But for Verizon Wireless, it appears ‘unlimited’ has an unusually limited definition when it comes to Netflix and YouTube.
Redditors are claiming that, compared to the speed of other sites, Netflix users are being limited to about 10Mbps. It seems to be consistent across the network, and it’s not on Netflix’s end. It appears using a VPN gets you the full stream. To be fair, 10Mbps is fast enough to get a 1080p stream on your phone or tablet, so most people wouldn’t notice this if they were watching and not checking the stats.
Still, it’s contrary to what Verizon claims with their unlimited plans, which do have limits written in. But as 9to5Mac points out, what Verizon says about limits isn’t “We’ll throttle your Netflix when we feel like it,” it’s “oh, you’ll be a bit further back in line.”
Most of the time customers will enjoy the same great network experience once they exceed 22GB during a billing cycle. If you’ve already used 22GB on a particular line during your current billing cycle and you’re on a cell site that is congested at that moment, your download may be temporarily queued behind other Verizon Wireless customers, which may result in slightly slower download speeds.
Is Verizon allowed to do this? Legally speaking, the answer is most likely yes, since it’s a private platform. But at the same time, for Verizon users, it raises questions, not the least of which is, if they’re paying for an “unlimited” data plan, and Verizon is arbitrarily limiting data from some services, is it doing it to any others? And why?
(Via 9to5Mac)