Verizon is cutting the cord, unlimited data plans going away this summer 43
We reported on this topic once last year when the Verizon CEO, Ivan Seidenberg, said that the company would be shifting to tiered data plans and removing our favorite: the unlimited option. But that was six months ago and we still haven't seen any changes. So should we still be worrying about the inevitable switch to happen this year?
Apparently that answer is, "Yes." As Reuters has reported, Verizon is (still) determined to cut their unlimited data packages sometime this summer, leaving us with unspecified tiered plans for individuals, as well as new family plans for multiple smartphone (and tablet) users. Keep in mind that we still have not been told what the data cap will be on these plans, nor what the cost will be for overages. So don't jump ship just yet.
AT&T long-ago bit this bullet a while back, and while the outcry from bloggers like us was strong, in the end we can't say we've seen any major lasting customer issues from the loss of unlimited data. Of course, that leaves Sprint as the only suitor at the unlimited data buffet (both Everything Data and Simply Everything offer limitless data), but they've yet to release a new webOS device since November of 2009 - and that was the crippled Palm Pixi. T-Mobile has unlimited-in-name-only data plans, with "high-speed" caps of 2GB or 5GB, after which they throttle down your connection speed to make sure you don't consume more data than your feeble human brain can handle.
If you'd asked us a year ago if the loss of an unlimited data plan would have spurred major customer churn, we would have said yes. But AT&T's growth has not slowed since their unlimited option went the way of the dodo, and we don't expect Verizon's will either. The overwhelming majority will never approach a 2GB data cap with their cell phone, let alone 5GB (most struggle to even hit 2GB with their home cable connection). Customers are going to go where they see the best value of service quality, plan options, customer service, and phone selection (mostly in that order). Of course, we'd love for something like the Pre3 to be a phone selection option on all of the major carriers...
Will you be sticking with Verizon through the transition? Or did you start thinking about hopping over to the "Now Network" as soon as you read the title of the article? Either way, it looks like "in the coming months" we'll be seeing quite a lot of changes coming to the mobile tech world.
43 Comments
I'm so glad I'm on Sprint :)
(minus the fact that there are no webos devices on sprint at the moment)
Sprint will be there soon...they all will.....yes Im sticking with VZ...but I need to at least know one thing...will this mean that I can add a touchpad or tethering option to my data plan for a reasonable rate? I mean its redic paying 25 bucks a month or more to share your own minutes....now that its capped...will i be able to throw on another device without breaking the bank???
Good point... they can hardly justify charging more based on how you use the data (on the phone or using the phone as a tether) when you're capped. This will be interesting.
Currently the only reasonable rate for legal tethering is the free 5gb/month you get from having the pixi plus or pre plus on your account. Paid tethering is $20/month for 2gb!
The problem isn't now. The problem is when apps demand more data and when more services are available online. They are planning for people to have high overages on their bill. It will get nasty. The problem is that both AT&T and Verizon don't have much free spectrum. Only Sprint has tons of unused spectrum. IT's the reason why they can truly offer unlimited.
This was in the cards a few years back when I heard the Verizon CMO tell me that unlimited is dead and going away.
Don't get fooled. This is basically a money grab and nothing more.
Kind of sad really. I was hoping they were actually serious when they claimed they wanted to push tiered speeds instead of tiered data caps.
So true. This is all just an IT issue. They should have been working years ago on capacity planning instead of enjoying the benefits of tons of subscribers.
Maybe if using my data didn't destroy my battery I would use it more. I'm on wifi at home and work and have actually used Data Toggle to keep my data off anytime I'm not on wifi.
Just another way for Verizon to jack up its already high prices even more!
When we bought the Veer on Sunday, AT&T let us keep the iPhone's unlimited data plan. So my wife's Veer has unlimited data.
Question. Why did you replace the iPhone with the Veer? (Note: I think WebOS is better than iOS so this is purely curiosity. Just wanting an understanding of what made it a better choice in your mind)
I just looked at my usage history and except for one month have never gone over 2GB, and I use my phone pretty extensively, IMO. I only occasionally use tethering, when in a pinch.
What has me concerned is the one month I went over 9GB. My phone didn't have enough storage to download, extract, and install a PDK game. So when the extract would fail, the phone would delete everything and start downloading it again. My battery would be shot in 2 hours but it took a couple days for me to figure out what was happening. In a capped world, the non-computer savvy customer could let this happen for weeks before taking it in. In that case, they'd get killed with overages.
AT&T is being sued for overcharging for data usage:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1388796/Up-20-million-Ame...
Nothing surprising there. AT&T is a multi-billion dolar corporation. If they aren't getting sued, then they aren't in business.
Yep, that's AT&T for you... I remember when I got my first phone on verizon, I MADE SURE to get unlimited everything, it was on the first months bill, the next month, I was charged around $500 for data usages because they said I never signed up for unlimited xD
We all knew it was coming.
Was unlimited with Verizon for a long time until I realized everyone in the family consistently used under 100MB/month. Switched to the $15 plan (no longer available) and saved a ton of money. Verizon actually recommended it. They are excellent at working with their customers to manage their bill. And The Network - you just can't beat it. I've got 5 phones on my family plan; have been a customer for >15 years and would never switch.
And this sort of thing is why we Sprint users won't stop complaining about HP "making things right" by us.
We don't want to leave Sprint.
It's still the cheapest, the signal is pretty wide spread (and if you don't have an actual Sprint connection, you get Verizon's - try that with AT&T...), and, despite the flood of Android garbage, it can't be said that they don't offer a heck of a lot of hardware options.
Oh...
And unlimited data, SMS, mobile to *ANY* mobile, early nights, etc.
Sprint wins hand's down every time. Now they just need to give us a Pre3...
And to further:
Sprint Data (my phone number)
Used: 1,591,409KB / Unlimited
Remaining: Unlimited
Try that with the others. And this has been light couple weeks (only half though billing period as well!). It's not uncommon for me to be over 5GIG each billing cycle. I stream music with Ampache Mobile most times when I'm driving. There's two other phones on my account on top of that. ONE CHARGE.
M.
So, how does Sprint's "need to give us a Pre3" become HP's need to "make things right"? Sprint made the decision to not carry anything beyond the original Pre/Pixi, not HP.
If you love your cheap plan at Sprint, great. Stay there. However, quit whining about Sprint's lack of quality webOS devices. Your carrier made that decision.
You have a choice to make. You can (a) move to another carrier, which you won't do simply because of price; (b) keep hoping that someone will give you a webOS device on Sprint, but "free" to "make it right"; or, (c) accept the fact that you get what you pay for.
What matters now is the FUTURE choice of Sprint. We want it to include webOS devices so we can have our favorite phone on a well priced plan w/o limits.
Don't forget UNLIMITED roaming. I don't need it often, but used it at a friend's lake house in the country last weekend.
FYI: Sprint does not roam on Verizon. They did roam on areas acquired in the Alltel merger but those agreements are expiring with no promise of renewal.
I didn't realize this. Thank you for the head's up!
M.
I have been with Verizon for the past few years and while I cant complain about there service in terms and call quality, with this announcement, I am wanting the Pre 3 to go to Sprint even more now.
Not only is Sprint cheaper but not having to worry about data caps or throttling is nice. I have been waiting and waiting for the Pre 3 even though I would prefer a larger webOS slab but since that is completely up in the air right now, I cant wait around till Q4 of this year at the earliest for any evidence of that device to show itself.
Has it been confirmed, obviously not officially by Sprint or HP but through other legitimate sources that the Pre 3 is coming to Sprint? I am currently out of contract with Verizon and I did enjoy using the Veer in the brief time I had with it but not a fan of AT&T in my area.
I understand it but don't like it. I have 4 phones on my plan and they are all pres for sprint. I have turned off my cable and my internet and rely soley on the Pre's tether for internet and tv (Roku box). I already pay 200+ for all four phones so would it cost me more? What about the Mifis, will they cap those? Would it be cheaper to get a myfi and not unlimited? Would limits apply to sum of all four phones or each phone? I am shariing the minutes amongst all four phones. It is a slippery slope.
Since Sprint's competitors removed it, they are no longer pressured by maintaining their so it will be easier for them to drop it or start with throttling. Geesh the North American carriers are so backwards.
If your staying with Vz or ATT, then you have the option of Unlimited 4G with a personal HOTSpot with tons of Spectrum available....
I moved to this carrier No phones/voice service, just internet/data for connected devices. It cost me $45/month for Unlimited 4G service.
What if you don't renew your contract? if i were to buy a phone elsewhere and activate it on my Verizon account, would my current agreement change? I'd say this is a major breach of terms...?
This sucks.
Any ideas on if those in VZW still be able to grandfather their old unlimited plans? I sure hope so! I use more than 2GB of data EVERY MONTH with my phone and that includes almost no streaming of videos and no tethering.
Web browsing, podcasting, streaming music through Ampache, and using Voogle etc. is enough for me to exceed a 2GB cap every month.
It may not be a huge issue for many right now, but imagine what will happen when music synergy/google music/amazon/whatever becomes the norm, and we're all trying to watch videos by tethering to our tablets to boot! The carriers know this is about to happen and jumped to get control of the data plans while they still could!
Look at bnceo and Orion Antares's posts up above, they know what's really happening with this.
its just so sad how the mobile operators, like the oil companies, are bleeding money so badly, forcing their hand to raise rates.
if only they were a little bit profitable.
good thing we're not ending big oil subsidies, maybe the telcos need more subsidies too?
what I don't see is the fact that sprint's ceo made an announcement previously. He stated sprint would like to and will continue offering unlimited dat. However, if the usage gets too high they would have to stop offering it. I read that on engadget a while back so think twice if you are looking to jump ship. With all the tablets and growing popularity of them and smartphones consumption will rise. The question is how long until sprint also stops offering it. As to tethering. If I could technically charge say 1 million customers a month $10 for a service they should be paying for wouldn't you enforce the plans you already had set up for it. Apply real numbers and do the math on the monthly income a carrier would be losing. Its just how long till sprint realizes what at&t has.
Hey, it's not like they are supposed to be a public utility. . .Oh, wait, they are supposed to be a public utility. . .I'm about ready to cancel the whole deal. My desktop will do fine. I see absolutely no point in paying over $2500 per year to the freakin' phone company!!
does this mean that if the pre3 comes out before the changes we can waive the ETF?
Wow, I am a data hog!
I have the Pre Plus on Verizon, so I get the free hotspot and I normally have to watch and make sure I don't go over the 5 GB limit. Plus I routinely use about 4-6 GB on the unlimited plan (or more). Yikes! I thought everyone did that. (I mean, if you have all that data available, why not use it, I figure.)
I have to wait and see what the new prices and options will be before we make any decision on changing our plan.
But I have to say shared data among families is a long time in coming. FINALLY!
Hi all,
1. V is putting together a family data sharing plan, here is a link to my posting about it:
http://forums.precentral.net/cdma-north-america/282838-verizon-eyes-fami...
2. It isn't exactly a surprise that V is doing away with an unlimited data plan!
I've been waiting for this particular shoe to drop for quite awhile.
Take care,
Jay
"Struggle to hit 2GB with their home data connection?"
Between Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube, not to mention normal surfing, I'd guess that my house hits 2GB a DAY, much less struggling to get there in a month.
I believe that poster was referring to using his wifi data connection for his phone while at home. This is what many of us do also. I have the el-cheapo $15/month ATT plan, and I never even come close to the 200 MB allowance, because everything I do that is data-intensive, I do at home over wifi, not on ATT's mobile network. I have found this to be a very reasonable price for having the data connection when I need it, but really don't use it that much when I'm out. Obviously, by reading the posts above, this plan wouldn't work so well for those who stream media a bunch!
Welcome to tiered living.
Generating money out of thin air!
Brought to you by Comcast, the FCC, and the normal cast of characters.
Have a problem with with it?! Then get off your arse and call your state PUC (Public Utilities Commision) and remind them who they work for.
Just a reminder, if your carrier is giving you the run around, file a complaint with your State PUC. It does wonders for Customer Service.
Have a nice day.
I'm curious how they are going to treat current users of the unlimited plan. As long as we continue to pay for it, they should allow us to keep using it since we "should" be grandfathered into it.
I don't want a gimped plan or have to pay more for my monthly data usage as I use over 1gb every month.
Between TuneIn, Pandora, MLB Game Audio,& sporadic use of sprint tv on the Pre(-): Sprint Data Unlimited 2,271,963
The Hero can roam in a basement office in Las Vegas while the Pre won't. iHeartRadio was in the equation before the update. Pandora and TuneIn: Sprint Data Unlimited 933,596;
Sprint Data Roaming Unlimited 364,523. I imagine NetFlix would increase that on the EVO 3D.
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This is an issue that may eventually effect Sprint as well. As long as people are using the free tethering application from their Webos devices as the only means of home networking, eventually Sprint will cut the cord. Free tethering is not meant to replace all home network activity, it's meant to use carefully and modestly. You are going to ruin unlimited data for everyone.