AT&T Drops FaceTime Shared Data Plan Requirement for iPhone 5

AT&T today announced that it will no longer require customers to have a shared data plan in order to access FaceTime over cellular, but only for those with an iPhone 5.

In a Thursday statement, AT&T said FaceTime over cellular will be accessible to "iOS 6 customers with an LTE device on any tiered data plan." Though people with older versions of the iPhone can upgrade to iOS 6, only the iPhone 5 is an LTE device. AT&T said it expects to make FaceTime over cellular available to iPhone 5 users in the next 8-10 weeks.

Customers with devices other than the iPhone 5 can still use FaceTime over cellular on a shared data plan, AT&T said, or over Wi-Fi. AT&T said that as of Oct. 26, it also started rolling out new billing plans for its deaf and hard of hearing customers that will let them access FaceTime.

The FaceTime iOS and Mac video chat service initially only worked when both people had their iDevices connected to a Wi-Fi network. But at its Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) in June, iOS 6 would allow for FaceTime access over cellular networks, a move that will likely broaden the reach of a product that has thus far been overshadowed by solutions like Skype.

Several months ago, that it would only offer FaceTime over cellular to those who signed up for one of the carrier's shared data plans, which . But that prompted consumer groups like Public Knowledge, Free Press, and the New America Foundation to claim that AT&T was violating net neutrality rules.

AT&T strongly denied that it was in violation of the FCC rules. In a today, Jim Cicconi, AT&T's senior executive for regulatory and legislative affairs, said the carrier decided to take a "cautious" approach to FaceTime over cellular because "AT&T has by far more iPhones on our network than any other carrier."

"We're proud of this fact and the confidence our customers have in us," Cicconi wrote. "But it also means that when Apple rolls out new services or changes, as it did in iOS 6, it can have a much greater, and more immediate, impact on AT&T's network than is the case with carriers who have far fewer iPhone users."

With FaceTime pre-loaded on millions of iPhones, AT&T said its engineers would not be able to assess the network impact of having its customers use Apple's video chat service. "It is for this reason that we took a more cautious approach toward the app," Cicconi wrote.

"We will continue to gather and assess the network data on this issue over the next few months and anticipate that we will be able to expand the availability of FaceTime to our customers on other billing plans in the near future," he concluded.

The consumer groups that complained about AT&T's original decision said they will keep tabs on the FaceTime over cellular rollout to make sure AT&T follows through and actually rolls it out to everyone over time.

"AT&T's course correction is a move in the right direction, but until the company makes FaceTime available to all of its customers it is still in violation of the FCC's rules and the broader principles of Net Neutrality," Free Press policy director Matt Wood said in a statement.

"We are willing to wait and see if AT&T will follow through with its promise to end its illegal practices in short order. We still intend to pursue legal action against AT&T if it doesn't make FaceTime available to all of its customers quickly," said Public Knowledge senior staff attorney John Bergmayer.