Consumers value fast mobile networks more highly than unlimited data according to a Digital Telecom Consumer Survey conducted by Business Insider. When choosing a provider of wireless services, 84% of consumer revealed that the speed of the network was more important than the existence of an unlimited data plan.

The percentage of consumers who considered the existence of an unlimited data plan the most critical factor with regards to choosing a wireless provider was 68%. This has come as a surprise since most carriers including AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T), Sprint Corp (NYSE:S), T-Mobile US Inc (NASDAQ:TMUS) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) focus on unlimited data to lure customers.

Mobile video

One of the reasons why consumers value high network speeds more than unlimited data was because of the increasing consumption of mobile video contents which requires high download speeds in order to enjoy uninterrupted viewing. This is set to continue since mobile video is expected to constitute close to three-quarters of all mobile data traffic globally in the next five years. Last year the share of mobile video traffic globally was 50%.

The unlimited data plans may also have had an effect on making consumers value high-network speeds above everything else with regards to wireless providers. This is because these plans have limits and this includes the carriers throttling network speeds. According to an Open Signal report, wireless providers are facing challenges when it comes to maintaining network quality in the face of increasing demand from subscribers of unlimited data.

Speed throttling

Some telecommunications operations such as AT&T and Verizon have turned to offering unlimited data plans which deliver high-bandwidth mobile content such as mobile video at speeds that are reduced in order to stave off mobile video consumption strains. Consequently this throttling practice leads to subscribers desiring faster network speeds above everything else.

Though the coming 5G technology is expected to offer much faster speeds and support the increasing consumption of mobile video content the technology is still years away. In ten years the 5G technology is expected to boost the capacity of mobile networks by a factor of 1,000 when compared to the existing 4G networks.

On Wednesday shares of AT&T Inc fell by 0.56% to close the day at $37.46.