New York launches probe into nationwide AT&T network outage

AT&T cellphone outage has some thinking about future of landlines
AT&T cellphone outage has some thinking about future of landlines 02:42

New York prosecutors said Thursday they are opening an investigation into a wireless network outage earlier this month that left thousands of AT&T customers across the U.S. without cellphone service for roughly 12 hours.

The February 22 outage, which also affected some Consumer Cellular, T-Mobile, UScellular and Verizon subscribers, led to widespread frustration by phone users and briefly disrupted 911 service in some communities. 

AT&T says affected customers will receive $5 credit after service outage 00:50

"Nationwide outages are not just an inconvenience, they can be dangerous, and it's critical that we protect consumers when an outage occurs," New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement announcing the probe and inviting consumers in the state whose phone service was interrupted to file a complaint.

AT&T apologized this week for the network disruption and offered a $5 credit to customers. The credit will automatically be applied to their accounts, but AT&T Business, AT&T Prepaid and Cricket customers are ineligible for reimbursement. 

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Alain Sherter

Alain Sherter covers business and economic affairs for CBSNews.com.

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