Airtel and TATA dont seem to be very happy with their unlimited broadband connections. It seems, that they've just realized that people tend to take the 'unlimited' nature rather too seriously.

People subscribing to an unlimited connection shamelessly use what they've paid for to the fullest extent, and they'll have none of it. Airtel and TATA clarify that 'Unlimited' is just a marketing gimmick, to be taken with a grain of salt (if not a spoonful). They now plan to implement measures to ensure that freedom to their customers doesn't end up costing them too much.

Airtel has implemented what it calls its 'Fair Use Policy', except that it is a policy that unfairly restricts use. According to the policy, users who download more than a certain extent, will now have the speed they paid for cut by 50%. According to their statement, this is done to prevent some customers from using all the bandwidth that they legally paid for, while they are unable to provide it to others due to their shortcomings. Hey Airtel? Is it OK if I pay half my bill cause your customer service executives took 6 weeks to activate my GPRS?

TATA on the other hand has defined different limits (high but not unlimited), for different internet speeds. They however plan to warn such users of their misdeeds, and offer them to upgrade to a higher bandwidth connection, or restrict their usage. Sounds like an ultimatum doesn't it? That's exactly what it is, since failing to comply mean getting your account suspended or terminated, and they'll probably expect you to pay your bill too.

What does unlimited mean exactly? Dictionaries define it as boundless, or infinite, or "not bounded by exceptions". People who subscribe to unlimited connections do so because they want to be unencumbered by restrictions, not a higher limit, NO limit. If they do not have the resources or means to provide equal service to all the customers that pay for it, they shouldn't promise to do so. They shouldn't ask people to pay for something they do not have the resources or intent to provide. At worst they should remove the misleading term 'unlimited' from the internet plans with such restrictions.

What they are doing is essentially shooting themselves in the foot, as heavy users and heavy payers will now prefer to switch to a service provider which has less limitations. In any case they have already lost our trust with a broken promise.

Source: MediaName - Airtel, TATA