Smartphones are increasingly used to
access multimedia-enabled services on the web. Most of the wireless data
traffic from smartphones today is in the form of audio (e.g., Pandora) or video
(e.g., YouTube, CNN Live, and Netflix), and the demand for these applications
is projected to grow exponentially. Many network providers have modified their cellular
data pricing plans in response to congestion. AT&T was one of the first to
switch from a flat fee for unlimited data access to a tiered wireless data
pricing plan ($15 for 200 Mbytes/mo, $25 plan for 2 Gbytes, etc.).
Verizon followed
suit soon afterward. Furthermore, the network providers have started to
throttle the speed of service for people using the network excessively.
In light of this, this article provides insights
to user behavior when the incentives vary a
bit more “dynamically.”
