Sprint is known for its unlimited data plans and it is currently the only major carrier that doesn’t throttle excessive data use. Following the announcement that Sprint planned to discontinue its WiMAX buildout and switch to the more widely used LTE standard, however, the company never mentioned whether its upcoming LTE network would continue to offer unlimited data plans. To clarify the issue, Sprint on Tuesday confirmed to TechHog that its 4G LTE devices “will be available on Sprint’s network featuring unlimited data.” While the carrier’s initial 4G LTE rollout will be limited, data-hungry users who are not pleased with AT&T and Verizon’s 2GB and 5GB plans may be tempted to switch to Sprint when the carrier’s LTE services begin to go live in the coming weeks and months.

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A judge in Southern California last month awarded $850 to an iPhone user who was throttled on AT&T’s network. The plaintiff, Matt Spaccarelli, filed a small claims case against AT&T, arguing that the carrier unfairly slowed speeds on his iPhone 4 despite his unlimited data plan. Spaccarelli on Thursday took to Twitter to announce that the carrier will not appeal the decision and instead paid him $850 plus $85 for court fees. In an interview with Mashable, Spaccarelli revealed that AT&T was still throttling his phone, which had an average download speed of 0.31Mbps. He said he plans to use the money to cancel his service with the network before his contract is up and will also travel to an AT&T stockholders meeting in April in Salt Lake City. “To me the check means AT&T didn’t stand a chance in the appeal,” Spaccarelli said. “If they did, they wouldn’t have paid me.” Read on for more.

AT&T’s decision comes shortly after the carrier offered Spaccarelli a new settlement and threatened to shut off his phone service for tethering. Spaccarelli, however, refused to sign the carrier’s proposed non-disclosure agreement. ”It isn’t about the money,” Spaccarelli said. “It’s about getting the service I’m paying for. I pay $130 per month and with that I expect a little bit of reasonableness.” Since the lawsuit, Spaccarelli said he switched to Walmart’s Straight Talk and now experiences download speeds of 3.83Mbps on AT&T’s 3G network. “Not bad for paying $45 per month for unlimited talking, texting, data and no contract,” he said.

Read [Mashable] Read [Twitter]

Comcast, Cablevision, Verizon, Time Warner Cable and other Internet service providers in the United States will soon launch new programs to police their networks in an effort to catch digital pirates and stop illegal file-sharing. Major ISPs announced last summer that they had agreed to take new measures in an effort to prevent subscribers from illegally downloading copyrighted material, but the specifics surrounding the imminent antipiracy measures were not made available. Now, RIAA chief executive Cary Sherman has said that ISPs are ready to begin their efforts to curtail illegal movie, music and software downloads on July 12th. Read on for more.

“Each ISP has to develop their infrastructure for automating the system,” Sherman said during a talk at the annual Association of American Publishers meeting, according to CNET. Measures will also be taken to establish databases “so they can keep track of repeat infringers, so they know that this is the first notice or the third notice. Every ISP has to do it differently depending on the architecture of its particular network. Some are nearing completion and others are a little further from completion.”

Customers found to be illegally downloading copyrighted material will first receive one or two notifications from their ISPs, essentially stating that they have been caught. If the illegal downloads continue, subscribers will receive a new notice requesting acknowledgement that the notice has been received. Subsequent offenses can then result in bandwidth throttling and even service suspension.

The news comes shortly after the closure of file-sharing giant Megaupload and increased pressure on other networks thought to be major hubs for the illegal distribution of copyrighted materials. Some studies show that these measures have had no impact on piracy, however, so organizations like the RIAA have been lobbying for ISPs to intervene and develop systems that will allow them to police their networks and directly address subscribers who illegally download copyrighted content.

A judge in Southern California last month awarded $850 to an iPhone user who was throttled on AT&T’s network. The plaintiff, Matt Spaccarelli, filed a small claims case against AT&T, arguing that the carrier unfairly slowed speeds on his iPhone 4 despite his unlimited data plan. According to a report from the Associated Press, AT&T is offering Spaccarelli a new settlement, however the company declined to comment on the matter. If Spaccarelli does not want to sit down with the carrier, it will reportedly look into shutting off his service. Earlier this month AT&T amended its data throttling policy for unlimited users, stating that LTE phones will be slowed after a 5GB monthly allowance, while non-LTE devices will be limited to 3GB of full-speed data.

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AT&T on Thursday announced a revision to its smartphone data throttling policy, which impacts users who have chosen to retain the unlimited smartphone data plan AT&T discontinued some time ago. AT&T’s policy had been ambiguous until now, with the carrier stating simply that the top 5% of smartphone users would experience slowed data speeds until a new billing period began. It was unclear how much data a subscriber had to use in order to approach the top 5%, however, and a number of reports claimed users were being throttled after using 2GB of data or even less. Now, AT&T is clarifying that it will only begin throttling smartphone users with 4G LTE devices after 5GB of data has been used in a single billing period, and subscribers with non-LTE devices will be throttled after 3GB of usage. It has also been reported that AT&T increased the speeds experienced by users while their data speeds are being throttled, but a company spokesperson declined to comment. AT&T’s full statement follows below.

With mobile data usage continuing to skyrocket and the availability of spectrum scarce, AT&T, like other wireless companies, manages its network in the most fair way possible so that we can provide the best possible mobile broadband experience for all our customers.

How we’re managing the network only affects a small minority of the heaviest smartphone data users still on unlimited plans. Put another way, this does not impact more than 95 percent of our smartphone customers.

Our unlimited plan customers have told us they want more clarity around how the program works and what they can expect. Here’s what customers need to know:

• Customers with a 3G or 4G smartphone – who also still have our unlimited data plan – will see speeds reduced if they use 3GB (gigabytes) of data or more in a billing cycle. Speeds will return to normal at the start of the next billing cycle. For context, less than 5 percent of smartphone customers use more than 3GB per month.
• For customers with a 4G LTE smartphone – who also still have our unlimited data plan – data speeds will be reduced if usage is 5GB (gigabytes) or more in a billing cycle. Speeds will return to normal at the start of the next billing cycle.

Customers will get a text message from us before experiencing a change in speed.

Even with reduced data speeds, these customers will still be able to email and surf the web, and continue to use an unlimited amount of data each month.

Not impacted by this program, launched last year, are customers on our tiered data plans.

The reason reduced speeds only apply to unlimited smartphone customers is because their data usage is significantly higher than those on tiered plans. For example, in January, the top 5 percent of our unlimited data plan customers used an average of over 50 percent more data than the top 5 percent of customers on tiered plans.

Because spectrum is limited and data usage continues to soar, we manage our network this way to be as fair as possible and so we can provide the best possible mobile broadband experience to everyone.

We encourage all of our customers to use Wi-Fi whenever possible – especially when watching video, which is the most data-intensive activity.

That’s because data activity over Wi-Fi does not count against the threshold for unlimited customers that triggers reduced data speeds or against customers’ tiered data plans. Customers can find out more at www.att.com/datainfo

AT&T on Monday announced a new plan that will let developers pay for the data used by their apps and services. The data consumed by apps that make use of this new feature would not apply toward a user’s data cap. The new service was pitched as a way for content providers to ease customers’ growing concerns over wireless data usage, however one public interest group sees the feature as a slap in the face to AT&T subscribers. “This new plan is unfortunate because it shows how fraudulent the AT&T data cap is, and calls into question the whole rationale of the data caps,” Harold Feld, legal director of Public Knowledge, said in a statement. ”Apparently it has nothing to do with network management. It’s a tool to get more revenue from developers and customers.” Read on for more.

“The plan creates two new groups of customers and app developers — those who pay AT&T extra for the privilege of being exempt from the cap and those who don’t,” Feld continued. ”We are disappointed that the FCC has ignored the two requests we have made for the agency to investigate the need for both wireless and landline broadband caps. There is still no rationale for why they are needed, what the network costs are, how they are imposed and how many customers are subject to them.”

AT&T’s smartphone data policies have been called into question lately following a new wave of subscriber complaints. Loyal customers who retained their unlimited data plans after AT&T switched to a tiered system can continue to use an unlimited amount of data each month, but their data speeds are throttled — sometimes to nearly unusable speeds, according to a number of readers who have emailed BGR with tales of woe — if they are among the top 5% of data users in a billing period.

On a number of occasions, subscribers have seen their data speeds slowed after less than 2GB of usage in a single billing period. For the same $30 AT&T is charging unlimited data plan holders each month, however, smartphone users on a tiered data plan can enjoy up to 3GB of full-speed data.

“This is exactly the type of market manipulation we hoped the FCC’s Open Internet rules would prevent,” Feld added. “If the Commission does not believe it has the authority under those rules to investigate this practice, it should do so under its general authority over wireless services.”

AT&T’s questionable policy with regard to unlimited smartphone data plan holders recently found its way back into the limelight following a new wave of subscriber complaints. The nation’s No.2 carrier no longer offers an unlimited data plan to smartphone users, though many subscribers on its network still have grandfathered plans that provide an unlimited amount of smartphone data each month. Subscribers who approach the top 5% of unlimited data users in a single billing period see their data speeds throttled, however, and countless users have found that AT&T is now beginning to throttle users after less than 2GB of data usage in a billing period. According to a new study, subscribers are right to be furious at AT&T because throttling does nothing to alleviate network bandwidth issues. Read on for more.

Wireless bill analysis firm Validas extracted data from more than 55,000 cell phone bills belonging to AT&T and Verizon Wireless subscribers from 2011, and the firm sought to determine whether or not data throttling is necessary. According to Validas’s findings, throttling may indeed simply be a ploy to push unlimited users into newer tiered plans.

“When we look at the top 5% of data users, there is virtually no difference in data consumption between those on unlimited and those on tiered plans—and yet the unlimited consumers are the ones at risk of getting their service turned off,” Validas wrote in its report. “So it’s curious that anyone would think the throttling here represents a serious effort at alleviating network bandwidth issues. After all, Sprint does seemingly fine maintaining non-throttled unlimited data for its customers.”

Verizon Wireless subscribers on unlimited smartphone data plans actually used less data on average than those with tiered plans according to Validas’s data. The opposite was the case at AT&T, however the difference was 0.78GB on average and median data usage varied by 0.53GB.

AT&T is not the only wireless carrier in the U.S. that throttles smartphone data speeds for unlimited data plan holders, of course. Verizon throttles the top 5% of unlimited data users and T-Mobile throttles its smartphone subscribers after 5GB of data usage in a single billing period. AT&T has drawn the most attention of late because it has been throttling unlimited data plan holders after less than 2GB of usage in many cases. AT&T offers a 3GB tiered plan for the same $30 per month that unlimited plan holders pay for 2GB of full-speed data or less, however the tiered plan offers 3GB of full-speed data.

AT&T’s stance on unlimited data is once again in the spotlight as a new wave of smartphone users cry foul over the carrier’s questionable policies. The nation’s No.2 carrier does not currently offer an unlimited data plan to its smartphone subscribers. Instead, there are three available data plans that include “soft” caps, allowing subscribers to continue using data services for additional fees after the soft cap is reached in a billing period. Users who have been with AT&T since before the carrier switched to tiered data plans — loyal customers who have in some cases maintained the same account in good standing for more than a decade — had the option to retain their unlimited data plans when AT&T first made the move to tiered plans. While heavy users were initially relieved when the opportunity to retain their old unlimited plans presented itself, that relief has quickly turned to disdain. Read on for more.

AT&T announced last summer that it planned to throttle unlimited smartphone data users beginning in October. The carrier said that the move would only affect the top 5% of heavy users, and it was a necessary measure in order to “manage exploding demand for mobile data.” The new policy meant that unlimited data users could continue using their handsets without data limits, but heavy users would see their data speeds reduced at a certain point each month if they used too much data. AT&T took particular care in not setting a specific limit that would have to be reached before throttling kicked in, but most typical users presumed it would be a number they would never hit.

When October came around, AT&T’s new policy took effect. That very same month, BGR began receiving tips from AT&T subscribers who received notices by SMS that they were nearing their monthly limits and that data speeds would soon be reduced. The peculiar thing, however, was that these subscribers hadn’t even used 2GB before receiving the notices; 2GB was the same amount of data afforded by AT&T’s top tiered data plan at the time.

Since October, there have been countless accounts of similar happenings. AT&T users in regions across the country are notified with the following SMS message that they are about to be throttled: “Your data usage this month places you in the top 5% of users. Use Wi-Fi to help avoid reduced speeds.”

What is most interesting about this new wave of complaints, however, is that subscribers are still getting notices that they are in danger of experiencing reduced data speeds as they approach just 2GB of usage in a single billing period. As of January 22nd, however, AT&T’s main smartphone data plan offers 3GB of data for $30 per month — the same fee unlimited data users are paying for their plans. BGR has even received an email from an angry unlimited data subscriber who received a notice after using just 1.6GB of data during a billing period.

As it stands today, a user with AT&T’s $30 tiered plan can enjoy about 50% more data than an unlimited data user. Enjoy is the key word, because throttling brings AT&T’s typically speedy 3G and 4G data speeds down to 2G territory.

Last paragraph updated to remove reference to an earlier study conducted by Diffraction Analysis, which was cited incorrectly.

Almost every one of Sprint’s recent commercials takes aim at other carriers’ data caps and throttling, while the Now Network promotes “truly unlimited” data. However, on Wednesday reports began to circulate that Sprint throttles the top 1% of unlimited data users. Sprint responded to these claims and assured customers that it is indeed the only carrier with truly unlimited smartphone data. “Sprint does not throttle any postpaid phone data users for on-network or off-network usage,” a Sprint representative posted on the company’s website. “Sprint is the only national carrier offering smartphone users truly unlimited data with no throttling, metering or overages while on the Sprint network.” The company clarified that it has various “terms and conditions which prohibit certain types of data use that may impair other customers’ usage or harm or interfere with the network.” Sprint claims CEO Dan Hesse was referring to the company’s right to terminate the service of users who violate these terms when he said “for those that want to abuse it, we can knock them off.”

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Verizon Wireless will soon publish an API that allows users to temporarily “turbocharge” their data speeds for a fee. The new API must be implemented into mobile apps by their developers, and it will offer users a “turbo button” that gives individual apps a speed boost. PCMag reports that the service will be tied to an on-device payment system, and subscribers will have to pay each time they want to temporarily increase their data speeds. These pay-per-use speed boosts will also be given priority when Verizon’s network is congested. In order to work, the turbocharge feature requires that an app utilize a “network optimization API” that Verizon doesn’t expect to publish until the third quarter next year.

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Sprint on Thursday confirmed that it will soon introduce a data cap tied to its mobile hotspot add-on for smartphone users. Currently, Sprint subscribers with compatible smartphones can pay an extra $29.99 per month for unlimited Wi-Fi tethering, which allows other devices to connect via Wi-Fi in order to utilize a Sprint phone’s 3G or 4G data connection. Beginning October 2nd, the mobile hotspot add-on will be capped at 5GB of data per month. Read on for more.

“Sprint continues to offer unlimited data for phones in its Everything Data and Simply Everything plans,” a Sprint spokesperson told BGR in an emailed statement. “Mobile Hotspot data usage is calculated independent of a customer’s phone data usage. The mobile hotspot functionality on a phone enables other Wi-Fi enabled devices to connect to the Sprint network. Effective Oct. 2, Sprint is changing the optional $29.99 Mobile Hotspot add-on for phones. The new add-on has a monthly 5GB on-network data allowance for 3G or combined 3G/4G usage.”

The spokesperson did not clarify what happens once the 5GB cap is reached, however an earlier report indicated that customers will be billed $0.05 per megabyte over 5GB if their usage goes over the cap in a single billing period. Sprint’s tablets will reportedly not be affected by the policy change, and standard data tied to the carrier’s “Everything” plans will remain unlimited.

Sprint will reportedly introduce a 5GB cap on mobile hotspot data for smartphone users beginning October 2nd. A purported leaked document obtained by SprintFeed states that Sprint’s $29.99 Wi-Fi tethering add-on for smartphones will no longer be unlimited beginning early next month. Additional data above the 5GB cap will be billed at $0.05 per megabyte according to the document. The new policy would not impact standard smartphone data, nor would it affect the mobile hotspot function on tablets. This is a slippery slope, however, and it could indicate that Sprint’s unlimited data plans are eating too much the carrier’s margins to be sustainable. Sprint has told BGR on numerous occasions that it will continue to offer unlimited data plans for as long as it can, and the carrier is expected to launch Apple’s iPhone 5 next month with unlimited data. Sprint did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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AT&T said on Friday that it will begin throttling unlimited smartphone data plans as of October 1st. “Like other wireless companies, we’re taking steps to manage exploding demand for mobile data,” AT&T said Friday in a statement. The carrier continued, “One new measure is a step that may reduce the data throughput speed experienced by a very small minority of smartphone customers who are on unlimited plans – those whose extraordinary level of data usage puts them in the top 5 percent of our heaviest data users in a billing period. In fact, these customers on average use 12 times more data than the average of all other smartphone data customers.” AT&T was very careful to mention, repeatedly, that the new move will not impact the “vast majority” of its customers. According to the carrier’s statement, only the top 5% of its smartphone data users will be affected. AT&T’s full statement follows below.

An Update for Our Smartphone Customers With Unlimited Data Plans

Like other wireless companies, we’re taking steps to manage exploding demand for mobile data.  Many experts agree the country is facing a serious wireless spectrum crunch.  We’re responding on many levels, including investing billions in our wireless network this year and working to acquire additional network capacity.  We’re also taking additional, more immediate measures to help address network congestion.

One new measure is a step that may reduce the data throughput speed experienced by a very small minority of smartphone customers who are on unlimited plans – those whose extraordinary level of data usage puts them in the top 5 percent of our heaviest data users in a billing period.  In fact, these customers on average use 12 times more data than the average of all other smartphone data customers.  This step will not apply to our 15 million smartphone customers on a tiered data plan or the vast majority of smartphone customers who still have unlimited data plans.

Starting October 1, smartphone customers with unlimited data plans may experience reduced speeds once their usage in a billing cycle reaches the level that puts them among the top 5 percent of heaviest data users.  These customers can still use unlimited data and their speeds will be restored with the start of the next billing cycle.  Before you are affected, we will provide multiple notices, including a grace period.

This change will never impact the vast majority of our customers, and is designed to create a better service experience for all.

The amount of data usage of our top 5 percent of heaviest users varies from month to month, based on the usage of others and the ever-increasing demand for mobile broadband services.  To rank among the top 5 percent, you have to use an extraordinary amount of data in a single billing period.

There will be no changes for the vast majority of customers.  It’s not how much time you spend using your device, it’s what you do with it.  You can send or receive thousands of emails, surf thousands of Web pages and watch hours of streaming video every month and not be in the top 5 percent of data users.

Typically what puts someone in the top 5 percent is streaming very large amounts of video and music daily over the wireless network, not Wi-Fi.  Streaming video apps, remote web camera apps, sending large data files (like video) and some online gaming are examples of applications that can use data quickly.  Using Wi-Fi doesn’t create wireless network congestion or count toward your wireless data usage.  AT&T smartphone customers have unlimited access to our entire Wi-Fi network, with more than 26,000 hotspots, at no additional cost.  They can also use Wi-Fi at home and in the office.

The bottom line is our customers have options. They can choose to stay on their unlimited plans and use unlimited amounts of data, but may experience reduced speeds at some point if they are an extraordinarily heavy data user. If speed is more important, they may wish to switch to a tiered usage plan, where customers can pay for more data if they need it and will not see reduced speeds.

But even as we pursue this additional measure, it will not solve our spectrum shortage and network capacity issues.  Nothing short of completing the T-Mobile merger will provide additional spectrum capacity to address these near term challenges.

T-Mobile on Monday introduced several new postpaid and prepaid plans headlined by a variety of throttled unlimited options that cater to a wide range of data-hungry smartphone users. The new individual unlimited plans start at $59.99 for unlimited nationwide voice calling and unlimited text messaging, and then become incrementally more expensive when unlimited data is added. Users can opt for unlimited data with 200MB of “high-speed” data for an extra $10 each month for a total of $69.99, 2GB of high-speed data for a total of $79.99, 5GB of high-speed data for $89.99, or 10GB of high-speed data for $119.99 each month. Once the high-speed data ceiling on one of the aforementioned plans is reached in a single month, data speeds will be reduced significantly — or “throttled” — until a new billing period begins. T-Mobile revamped several other postpaid plans and added two new prepaid options as well, and the details can be found in the press release below or on the carrier’s site.

T-Mobile’s New Unlimited Rate Plans Make Data Even More Affordable for Families on America’s Largest 4G Network

New T-Mobile plans feature unlimited data with no overages

BELLEVUE, Wash. — May 23, 2011 — T-Mobile USA, Inc. today announced a new suite of family and individual plans that expand on the exceptional value and consumer choice the company provides to make data affordable for families on America’s Largest 4G Network^™.

The plans, available for new and existing customers, offer single-line and multiline options with a range of price points for talk or unlimited talk, unlimited text and unlimited data — with no data overages —  offering 200 MB, 2 GB, 5 GB or 10 GB of high-speed data. Each of the plans also includes unlimited nationwide T-Mobile to T-Mobile calling, and unlimited nights and weekends. T-Mobile also continues to offer one of the industry’s most affordable entry-level unlimited data plans, starting at just $10 for 200 MB of high-speed data per billing month.

Beating the competition, T-Mobile’s $139.99 unlimited family plan with unlimited talk, unlimited text and unlimited data with 2 GB of high-speed data offers a savings of more than $350 per person, per year on a two-line annual plan, compared with similar smartphones plans from AT&T, Verizon and Sprint.¹

“Our new rate plans powered by America’s Largest 4G Network put us in an excellent position to capitalize on the 80 percent of wireless customers in America who want smartphones,” said Cole Brodman, chief marketing officer, T-Mobile USA. “We’re providing customers with the 4G coverage they need, an exciting portfolio of 4G smartphones, and the value and flexibility to meet the diverse desires of their entire family.”

T-Mobile’s family plans are also more flexible than ever, allowing customers to select different data options and add-a-line features to meet the needs of first-time smartphone consumers, data-hungry young adults and text-centric teens all in one customized package.

The new family and individual plans are available now. To find the T-Mobile plan that best fits their needs, customers can visit http://www.t-mobile.com.

We recently had a chance to speak with Sprint’s Vice President of Product Development, Fared Adib, about Sprint’s upcoming devices, product strategy, and a whole lot more. Interested in Sprint’s thoughts on unlimited versus capped or throttled data? Wondering about Sprint’s plans for product differentiation in 2011 and beyond? Curious to know if Sprint will offer RIM’s new BlackBerry Bold 9930? Hit the break for our full in-depth interview with one of the industry’s driving forces of innovation.

BGR Interview is a series of interviews and conversations with executives, influencers, tastemakers and innovators, covering the mobile and consumer electronics industries.

First up, what phone is in your pocket? I think that’s a great question to kick it off!

[Laughter] Haha, OK. That’s a good one! I have the Nexus S 4G I am carrying right now. And, actually, I carry more than one phone at a time so it’s actually an unfair question — I’m also carrying an EVO 3D.

Great. Are 3D devices a big part of Sprint’s strategy going forward, would you say?

You know, our take on 3D is that, it’s probably a respectable part of our portfolio just in proportion into the market size of how 3D is taking off in the rest of the technology world. I think we kind of see 3D as a differentiated service that helps us make these phones stand out a little bit more. Also, they kind of follow a trend we’re seeing on TVs and a lot of mobile devices, that 3D is going to be another growth curve for generating interest in smartphones beyond what you see today. I’m not going to say that every phone we’re going to carry is going to be 3D, but I do think there is a place for it, especially when you talk about iconic phones. It’s another feature I think you’re going to see become as common as the type of 4G connection you have, or the size of the screen and things of that nature. It will become more and more kind of an added feature that you’re going to see over time in phones.

What key features do you think that U.S. smartphone users look for in a phone? What do you think the biggest draws are in Sprint’s smartphone lineup and what do you think people really are looking for right now?

Well, I think it’s a combination of things. When we first launched the EVO, we really sat down, and I think something we did with the EVO that not a lot of carriers have done in the past was we really co-developed that product with HTC. And by that, I mean typically the way carriers pick a phone is you sit down with an OEM partner and you’d see a portfolio and do RFPs and get some kind of requirements out there. Then the OEMs would delver to you a model and then you’d evaluate it, and then at that point you’d agree on a price and a volume and some colors and things like that and get it out to market. But the way we approached the EVO was, we really wanted to sit down and say what would a 4G network get you? And, what would the experience be like that we want to deliver? It would be more multimedia; more speed gets you more content and more bandwidth faster to the device, so, you really can’t take a standard device and apply all those laws to it. So, you really have to have a bigger screen if you’re going to watch more content, and you have to have a faster processor to process it.

So, a lot of what we’re doing right now is we’ve really become more like a computer company, where we’re evaluating the total sum of the parts of the devices and sitting down with our OEM partners and really kind of specifying specific components for the device. So, things like the processors: we sit down and we really take note of what the best processors are in the roadmap for when we want to deliver this to market, and what kind of displays. What we’re finding is — I’ll use the EVO again because it’s kind of like our flagship franchise — when you look at products like the EVO, you see that it’s the sum of the parts that made it great. So, it was the bigger screen, it was the faster processor, the better display, and the fast network all combined that really make people say, “Hey, this is a great device!” Then we added some unique features like a kickstand and things like that, and it just adds icing on the cake. And I think that’s what we’re trying to replicate time and time over is, you know, you need to have a great processor, you need to have a great display, but you need to have some kind of unique feature on top of that really makes this thing stand out from other things on the market.

Sort of adding on to that, while you guys differentiated with the EVO and were the first in a lot of ways with a 4G smartphone on a 4G network, Android phones in general seems to be almost stuck in a cycle of similar devices that just feature spec-bumps. Do you think this is a sustainable model apart from that flagship device that you guys offer?

Well no, I don’t think it’s sustainable. I think what happens is that these kind of innovations only come once in a few years, and typically, you know, for anybody who’s done product management or product development, there’s this great dilemma called the innovator’s dilemma. What it is, is that in all these products have an S-curve life cycle. If you were to graph it out, it’s kind of like this growth curve and you’d see this line grow, and then it kind of stalls at a certain point because innovation can be replicated at some point. And then what you have is a lot of the same stuff, and then you have to find something else to innovate again and then you get this kink in the curve that creates a new growth cycle, which makes it look like an “S”.

You know, what’s happening right now is that once we launched the EVO it was really one of the only devices on the market like that, with 4G and a 4.3-inch display, and so on and so forth; you know the specs better than anyone. But when you look at it, that’s only sustainable because quickly after that you start seeing all kinds of other devices, like different types of DROIDs from Motorola, other products from HTC, Samsung, and so on. Now you’ve got a lot of products that are similar, and every month there’s one that comes out that has something that is one-upping the one that came out before it. This is very similar to what happens in the computer industry. It’s not a sustainable model, and so over time, what you have to do is you have to look at where the trends are and how you can truly differentiate. Luckily, we have tried to differentiate on different fronts: one is by having a breadth of a portfolio that serves a lot of different types of users, but two, by also trying t0 drive some other value-added features that people may want like Sprint ID, that we think is a value-add to the customer on top of Android to help to customize it for those that aren’t that technically capable of doing it that want something prepackaged.

The other is price plans become a big way of how carriers differentiate. You know our unlimited pricing is another value-add, and when people all have pretty much the same device, then the next evaluation point comes down to how much do customers have to pay a month for this service? And is it a hassle free service or are they paying by the bucket? I think that  in combination with some of the other elements, like the network and the reliability of it and speeds, I think that all of those things cumulatively is how you differentiate. So it’s the total value proposition versus just any one key element or technological feature, because those things can be pretty easily replicated, but the sum of the parts is some what harder to replicate and that’s where we have been tyring to focus.

The other thing I’ll add is that we’ve been taking some chances. A lot of our competitors try to play it safe. What we have been trying to do is take some chances and do some products that may not be everybody’s cup of tea, but they may have a place in the marketplace to help drive innovation and competition. So we did the Echo, which a lot of people, if you were to ask them if they need a product like that, would probably have said “no.” But you sometimes have to just buck the trends and take some chances, and go out there and do some things that haven’t been done before, and hope that those leanings help drive more innovation, more competition and get people thinking of how to build a device differently than just putting another 4.3-inch screen in an all black chassis.

What you said about differentiation makes a whole lot of sense and adding on to that, you have the EVO 3D which distinguishes itself with a 3D display, and the Echo obviously has two screens. What other features should we look for in Sprint phones that might set them apart from the competition down the road? What’s the next innovation out of Sprint?

Just to touch on the ones you just said, I’ll kind of elaborate on it then answer your question. With the EVO 3D, one of the things that we really want to point out with that is if you take a look at it and take the 3D away from that product for a second — if you look at every feature that product has — it’s typically best in class. It’s got a qHD display, its got this dual-core 1.2GHz Snapdragon processor, and it’s got a lot of core ROM and RAM memory in it. Then you throw the 3D on top of that, and it’s just an added benefit, right? So if I was to look at that compared to an ATRIX for example, or a BIONIC, I’d say you know what? I get more for my money here. For the same amount I’m paying for these other devices, maybe I should just go with this EVO 3D. And whether I use the 3D or not, I’m going to buy it anyway.

There are other value-added features, and I think some of them go beyond hardware; I think some of them are in the software realm. I think things we’re doing that are really innovative are, for example, we have this relationship with Google on Google Voice, and that was another thing where we took leadership and we said look, this is kind of something a lot of people don’t know about. It’s really more of a geeky tech trend; people who have Google Voice feel special because this is something unique that’s not out in the marketplace en masse. And we thought, well how do we bring this to the masses and how do we do it makes this easier for people to adopt? Traditionally, the way Google Voice works, you have to go and get your own number from Google and it’s very hard for a lot people who don’t want to displace their number they have with their carrier. So we said why don’t we just take that out of the equation, and why don’t we just allow people to make their Sprint number their Google Voice number without porting it and making this a difficult process? So that’s what we did. We kind of looked for a unique value-added thing that a carrier could do there, and we added it into the equation.

I think those types of software and services are going to continue to be how how people are going to look at the same product and say, well I can buy this anywhere but these guys at Sprint offer this Google Voice integration that I can’t get at Verizon and I can’t get at AT&T, so that’s where I’m going to go and get my product. And I think, again, it’s the sum of the parts that makes the difference and the value proposition.

You know I think, compared to our competition, we’ve been doing a lot more innovative things like that are not just playing it safe. We’ve done SprintID, which was an innovative feature and nobody else in the industry done anything like that. We’ve done Google Voice. We did Echo, we did EVO, and we did EVO 3D. We’re also doing things like the green products we just announced — it may not be something a lot of BGR readers are going to get too excited about, but there is a market of people who are socially conscious out there and want to respect the environment, so we’ve produced this Android phone that’s touch, QWERTY, that can be at an affordable price point that maybe the teenagers and the young kids can buy, that also helps our environment. So there are other areas like that where we’re also taking a leadership position that I think kind of differentiates us from the competition out there.

Absolutely. Also talking about value, you guys have a commercial running where CEO Dan Hesse talks about unlimited data plans which are free of metering and throttling. How important do you think unlimited and unthrottled data is to the smartphone experience?

Well we believe very strongly in this one, and this is more of a principle than anything else. The reason that unlimited data plans were originally brought to market — and we were really the innovators; we led, and brought the first unlimited data plan to the mass market — was that we saw a dilemma. The dilemma was the way price plans worked, customers had too much to choose from when they bought smartphones. They had to pick their data plan, their messaging plan, their voice plan, and then any other add-on they wanted… if they wanted TV they had to buy a package for that. It just became very complex. And what we found is that it also limited how people were using their smartphones. So they’d buy these big powerful phones but then they would be using some of these functions in a very limited fashion. At the end of the day, they would become glorified messaging devices, or all-talk devices. We said the way to really change that is to eliminate the decision-making and the fear of running over on the amount of data you use, and the amount of messages you send, and the amount of talking that you do on the phone.

That is why we introduced unlimited, and we found that it drove down calls to our care departments because lots of times ,people would run over on their monthly bills and they’d really get scared and say hey, I need to change my plan; it’s not the right plan for me. And people were very fearful of using things because they’d run over on their bills. Once you took that off the table, it made it easier for the end customer and it made it worry-free for them on how to use these phones. It also raised the adoption of things like services, downloading apps, and utilizing the network. That’s really, at the end of the day as a carrier, what you want to do. We’re very big believers in that because we want people to continue to buy these phones and use them for what they are built for so they are happier. And we think a happier customer is one that’s going to stay with us longer.

I think if you go backwards and you start limiting people’s experience and charging them more for those experiences, and going back to the way things used to be — I don’t know about you but a lot of people don’t know when they have used a megabyte, or two megabytes, or a gigabyte of data — it’s just hard to throttle that. And metering and throttling your experience, we believe, is just going to get people back into this mode where they’re just going to be paranoid about these services and they’re just going to use them less and therefore they are not to be as happy; and they might not buy these high end devices. We think that all these things go together, and if you don’t have the right price plans as a carrier, you may actually see a negative result.

Would you say that unlimited data is a part of Sprint’s smartphone strategy moving into 2012 then?

Yeah, we’re going to try to keep it around as long as we can. What most people don’t people realize is that there is a cost here with us doing this, and we are definitely seeing a trend where people are using more and more data. Like I said we’re not against that, but what happens is that over a certain period of time if poeople abuse the unlimited data policies — if everyone constantly uses a lot of it — then it becomes more expensive for us to maintain the network. So you do have to look at that and balance that out as a carrier, to make sure you can still generate revenue to offset your costs.

That’s really the basics of what we’re trying to do. We’re not just trying to add a lot of different fees on to try to nickel and dime people. But what we are trying to do is make sure, as more people using things more in general, that we can offset those costs by at least generating a little more revenue to make sure we can sustain it. I’m not saying were going to raise prices anytime soon or anything like that, but I do think we’re constantly looking at it and we’re constantly managing the network. As long as we can, we’re going to keep the unlimited plans around. It’s something we believe is core to our principles of driving innovation and driving people to want to use these devices.

When I think of unlimited messaging, or data, my mind always goes back to BlackBerry. It’s just the device I always put in that category. How is Sprint’s relationship with RIM?

You know, it’s great. RIM has been a great partner of ours, and we’ve got a lot of great partners by the way. Microsoft, for example, has been a partner of ours for 10-plus years. RIM has been a great partner of ours for the last 10 years. We also have a longstanding relationship with Palm / HP. We’ve got a lot of great partners in this space and I think RIM is one of those where we have always stood by them. There has always been a market segment for the RIM product and we also believe there always will be some level of market segment for that product. There is an innovation value proposition they deliver to enterprises and to some consumers that is hard to get away from.

They’re making great products. Right now you see that they are losing some market share to some of their competitors, but I’ve seen this story play out several times over. There hasn’t been anyone in this industry that you’ve seen from a platform standpoint, that hasn’t lost market share once they have been on top. It’s very cyclical. Sometimes the company that’s on top this year isn’t on top next year and the company that’s on top next year isn’t on top the following year. I never count any of these platform companies out. Microsoft had its up and downs and they seem to be coming back — fairly moderately right now, but I think it’s still early in the game with the Windows Phone 7 platform. I think everybody has had those ups and downs, and RIM is one of those where we’re still a big believer in them and they are still a big part of our portfolio.

BlackBerry World was last week in Orlando and the BlackBerry Bold 9900 / 9930 was announced. There were no carriers announced for the CDMA unit, are there plans for Sprint to carry it?

The bottom line is that we have a good relationship with them; we’re one of their key partners around the world. They’re a platform company, and whenever they offer a platform they typically offer it to all carriers, so I’ll just leave it at that. It’s like the Curve… it’s a global platform. Bold has also been a global platform. It’s very rare that they do something that’s unique to just one carrier and if they do that, they typically don’t announce it in a global event like that. So I’ll just leave it at that, and you can extrapolate form there.

Final question… You touched on Microsoft and how they are coming back now with Windows Phone 7. What do you think about the partnership with Nokia and Microsoft? Do you think that will result in attractive devices for Sprint and your subscribers?

Yeah, I think it’s still early. I think these relationships, when they get announced, they obviously get a lot of press but again, I don’t count any of these companies out. Sprint is the No. 3 carrier in terms of size… we never count anyone out. You always want to maintain good relationships with everybody in the marketplace and I can tell you, you have to kind of look at people who are No. 3 in other industries, or No. 4 or No. 5, and you have to say don’t count them out either, because every time Sprint’s been counted out, we’ve proven people wrong. You have to think that very well-funded companies like RIM, Microsoft and Nokia, who have very good presence and market share in their respective categories, I think you can’t count them out either. I think the Microsoft / Nokia announcement is a very interesting one, but it’s not really a surprise. If you look, there’s a lot of synergies between of those companies. For them to unite in that way, I think, makes a lot of sense.