Advocacy groups say AT&T's FaceTime plans violate FCC rules

By Jennifer Martinez - 08/19/12 11:34 AM ET

Public interest groups Free Press and Public Knowledge are sounding alarm over AT&T's plans to restrict the use of Apple's FaceTime application over its mobile network only to customers that sign up for its new Mobile Share data plan.

The latest version of Apple's mobile operating system for the iPhone, iOS 6, will allow people to use FaceTime over mobile networks. Currently, subscribers can only use the video chat application if they're connected to a Wi-Fi network. While AT&T customers will still be able to access FaceTime over Wi-Fi, they will be required to sign up for its Mobile Share data plan if they want the flexibility to use the data heavy app on its cellular network.

Free Press and Public Knowledge argue that AT&T's plan violates the Federal Communications Commissions's Open Internet rules, which restrict mobile providers from blocking applications that compete with its voice services.

"Although carriers are permitted to engage in 'reasonable network management,' there is no technical reason why one data plan should be able to access FaceTime, and another not," said John Bergmayer, senior staff attorney at Public Knowledge, in a statement. "'Over-the-top' communications services like FaceTime are a threat to carriers' revenue, but they should respond by competing with these services and not by engaging in discriminatory behavior."

Free Press Policy Director Matt Wood argued that customers will have to buy a more expensive data plan "with extra voice minutes and texts they'll never use thrown in" just to use FaceTime on AT&T's mobile network.

"Blocking mobile FaceTime access for much of its user base may be a win for AT&T but it's a losing proposition for the rest of us," Wood said. "The FCC's rules prohibit such blatantly anti-competitive conduct by wireless companies."

An AT&T spokesman rejected the groups' claims about its plans violating FCC rules, saying the company is expanding the availability of the video chat app for its customers.

"FaceTime is available to all of our customers today over Wi-Fi and we're now expanding its availability even further as an added benefit of our new Mobile Share data plans," the spokesman said.

AT&T's new Mobile Share service plan, which lets subscribers share data across devices and tablets, will launch later this month. There had been earlier speculation that AT&T planned to charge a separate fee for people to use FaceTime over its cellular network.

Sprint, meanwhile, told the Wall Street Journal that said it doesn't have plans to charge consumers more to use FaceTime on its mobile network.