AT&T to change policy of charging poor customers more for super-slow Internet

AT&T has been charging some of its poorest customers top dollar for its slowest Internet service. But after criticism from a public interest group and press coverage about the disparity, the company said Sept 9 it plans to change the policy. Federal regulators require AT&T to provide discounted high-speed Internet service to families who are eligible for food stamps. But AT&T has been exploiting a loophole to refuse those discounts to some qualified families.

The reason: AT&T says its broadband service in low-income neighborhoods is too slow. The program, known as Access from AT&T, costs $5 or $10 a month, depending on the speed of AT&T's service. Those customers who can get service of 3 to 5 megabits per second only have to pay $5, while those who can get service with 5 Mbps or faster pay $10. The average broadband speed in the United States is 15 Mbps, according to Akamai. But there are many neighborhoods in which AT&T's service doesn't reach even 3 Mbps. And people who live in those neighborhoods have to pay full price -- an introductory rate of about $30 a month -- for the inferior service. AT&T agreed to the discounts in order to win FCC approval of its DirecTV purchase. The National Digital Inclusion Alliance, a public interest group, pushed AT&T to make the $5 a month offer available for customers whose service doesn't reach 3 Mbps. AT&T at first said it would stick to the strict terms of the FCC order. But, after a series of stories appeared in tech media, the company changed course.