AT&T’s data traffic is actually doubling annually

AT&T is now claiming that its mobile data traffic is doubling every year, rather than increasing by the more modest 40 percent annual rate it detailed in recent investor and analyst calls. The distinction is important because the faster AT&T’s HSPA and LTE networks become overloaded, the more pressure it faces to use its reserve spectrum and find new sources of airwaves. So is AT&T contradicting itself? No, it’s just looking at different sets of numbers. According to the Wall Street Journal, AT&T confirmed that the 40 percent number cited by AT&T executives cited only factored in increases from existing users, not traffic produced from new subscribers, i.e., the typical AT&T smartphone customer increased his mobile data consumption by 40 percent over the last 12 months. The 100 percent number is for overall mobile data traffic on its network, factoring in the increased usage of its existing subscriber base along with the burden millions of new smartphones brought to its network.