Beginning on Jan. 20, Boost Mobile customers with monthly unlimited plans will have to deal with the dreaded carrier tactic of data throttling.
Boost Mobile announced the impending policy change Tuesday via its Facebook page, where it detailed how and when a customer would face data reduction.
Users will still be able to get optimal speeds until they reach the 2.5GB limit set by Boost, which will then lead to the slowed 256kbps speed over the carrier's 3G network.
The 2.5GB limit will reset every billing cycle, with users then able to receive the full 4G or 3G speed maximum they were previously getting.
Unlimited data, not bandwidth
The move will not affect the actual data a user is permitted across Boost's unlimited plans, nor will it affect phone or text service, it will just curb how quickly users are able to access said data.
Perhaps aware of the potential backlash the throttling would incur, Boost assured its customers it believed only 3 percent of all users would be affected by the restrictions.
However, to keep customers in the know about how much data they consumer in a given month, Boost will also inform users when they are about to hit the wall.
When a user reaches 85 percent of the 2.5GB limit, a warning will be sent via text, and the same is true when a user maxes out their data limit in a month.
In Boost's defense, the carrier claimed it would take 400,000 mobile internet page views, about 90,000 emails (without attachments), 91 hours of streaming music, or 20 hours of video clips to hit the 2.5GB barrier.
TechRadar asked Sprint, Boost's parent company, for comment, and will update this story if and when the company responds.
