New York officials found that T-Mobile imposed unlawful usage caps and severely throttled speeds on low-income home Internet plans required by state law, leading to a settlement that mandates expanding plan availability and full compliance within 120 days.
- T-Mobile capped low-income home Internet at 50GB then throttled speeds to 600 Kbps
- Settlement requires T-Mobile to remove caps and expand program within 120 days
- Violations relate to the New York Affordable Broadband Act’s minimum speed mandates
What happened
New York state investigated T-Mobile for violating the Affordable Broadband Act (ABA) after discovering the company placed a 50GB monthly data cap on its low-income home Internet plans and throttled speeds to a maximum of 600 Kbps once the cap was exceeded. These restrictions conflicted with the ABA, which mandates a minimum speed of 25 Mbps for eligible households. The investigation also found that T-Mobile restricted these plans to areas with 5G coverage, excluding potential customers with only 4G service, and made plan details difficult to find by preventing search engines from indexing relevant webpages.
Following an extended probe lasting over 18 months, T-Mobile reached a settlement with New York's Attorney General and Governor Hochul. The company committed to removing the data cap and speed throttling, expanding the geographic availability of the low-income plans, and enhancing consumer access to plan information. These corrective actions must be completed within 120 days, ensuring wider compliance with the state law.
Why it matters
The New York Affordable Broadband Act represents a significant effort to ensure affordable and reliable home Internet for low-income residents, recognizing broadband as a critical utility. By enforcing minimum speeds and price points, the law aims to close the digital divide for vulnerable communities. T-Mobile’s actions undermined these objectives by effectively limiting affordable high-speed Internet access through hidden throttling and restrictive coverage criteria, which could lead to digital exclusion.
The settlement underscores governmental resolve to hold ISPs accountable to consumer protection laws, particularly those designed to guarantee meaningful access for underserved populations. It also sends a message across the industry that compliance with affordability and speed standards will be monitored and enforced, encouraging broader adherence to similar regulations nationwide as states consider their own broadband equity initiatives.
What to watch next
Stakeholders will be observing T-Mobile’s implementation of the settlement terms, specifically whether the company effectively removes data caps and throttling while expanding the program’s reach beyond 5G-only areas. Consumer advocacy groups and regulators will likely monitor customer experiences and transparency in plan eligibility and enrollment processes.
Beyond compliance in New York, regulators in other states with similar broadband affordability laws may intensify oversight of fixed wireless providers and ISPs offering discounted plans. The case may also prompt legislative updates or more detailed regulatory guidelines to prevent data caps or speed restrictions on subsidized broadband services, ensuring these programs deliver on their promise of accessible high-speed Internet.