AT&T scotches appeal, pays small-claims litigant

AT&T gave up on appealing an $850 award won by an iPhone user in small claims court, and sent him a check.

Matt Spaccarelli, of Simi Valley (CA) had sued the phone company because it was slowing down the data service on his phone. Spaccarelli has an "unlimited data" plan, but as of this fall, AT&T had begun slowing download speeds for these subscribers if they use more than a certain amount of data in a month. Spaccarelli argued that "unlimited is unlimited," and the judge agreed at a hearing on Feb. 24. AT&T initially said it would appeal the decision. It then offered to go into settlement talks with him, in a letter that implied that AT&T was looking at cancelling his service completely. Spaccarelli has admitted to "tethering" his phone to other devices, providing them Internet access through AT&T's wireless network. That's against AT&T's rules. Spaccarelli turned the settlement offer down. On March 16, AT&T said it was sending Spaccarelli a check for $850, plus $85 for court costs.