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Verizon To Hike Prices On Plans But Offer More Data (cnet.com)
Roger Cheng, reporting for CNET: Big changes are afoot at Verizon. The nation's largest wireless carrier is set to unveil changes to its plans that will make them more expensive, but will also include more data, according to someone familiar with the changes. The low-end "S" plan will go up by $5 to $35 a month, but will include 2 gigabytes of data, twice as much as before. The "M" plan will go up by $5 to $50 a month, while its data will rise from 3GB to 4GB. The "L" plan will go up by $10 to $70 a month, while data increases from 6GB to 8GB. The "XL" plan will go up by $10 to $90 a month, but you'll get 16GB, up from 12GB before. Lastly, the "XXL" plan will cost $10 more at $110 a month, but you will get 24GB instead of 18GB. The changes are part of a broader overhaul of its plans, which will also include a rollover data program called "Carryover Data," a new way to avoid overage fees, and better access to Canada and Mexico. The move reflects a heightened competitive environment, one in which smaller rivals T-Mobile and Sprint have begun winning away customers through aggressive offers. Many of these changes mimic offers already available at the other carriers.
But it is not our fault if our competition raises their prices too.
Jumpstart the tartan drive.
If you calculate it as $s per gigabyte. WIth this change I can actually save money by lower my data plan to the 4GB plan. 3GB was just about our monthly data usage, but 4GB should give me enough overhead to not worry about overages.
Maybe we're thinking about this the wrong way. Verizon revenue is about $32 billion and their profits about $4.4 Billion. How many customers do they have? If we could get reliable data and do the math, it would show how much profit they are making per customer.
I'm not a US citizen so in a sense this is not directly relevant, but across the world the mobile telcos seem to be pushing up prices, charging huge roaming premiums and raking in massive profits, yet, curiously, it doesn't seem to be resulting in a better service...
Does anyone know how much it's costing them to maintain enough bandwidth? Is this a genuine "cost of doing business" or is this "squeeze 'em till the pips squeak"???
Unlimited Data. $50 a month. Roaming data in 100+ countries. Free rental of WiFI router.
I'm glad that Verizon is being forced to acknowledge that customers are beings other than walking wallets, but TMobile is just better., Sorry.
I'm surprised VZW and ATT haven't tried to offer plans that are equal to TMobile's. I switched to TM and, despite all the "their network sucks" posts have found them to be perfectly fine for my use, and the international free data/text an added perk. In addition, I get 14GB of tethered data / month which is more than I ever use.. At half the price of my old plan plus unlimited data I am quite happy that I switched.
I'm a consultant - I convert gibberish into cash-flow.
"Safety mode" eliminates the prospect of an overage fee, and reduces the speed of the service until the end of the month....Customers with smaller plans can pay $5 extra to access "safety mode."
"a new way to avoid overage fees" by paying a fee
Two months ago we decided to put service on our daughter's old iPhone. Verizon wouldn't simply let me add a $15/month line to our shared pool of data - they said my plan was "too old". Instead they wanted me to switch to a new plan, which would have raised my monthly total cost by $35/month.
Instead I moved my mom, wife, sister and daughter all to TMobile. We are spending $30/month less with an added phone and more data to boot. Binge-on is also nice since daughter and wife use youtube and Pandora quite a lot.
The coverage isn't quite as good as Verizon - but it is good enough.
Why doesn't the FTC stop this?
Why would the FTC stop this? Verizon has plenty of competition from AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint. Verizon and AT&T compete for customers who can pay for the best product, and T-Mobile / Sprint compete for more cost-conscious customers. Considering AT&T has a larger wireless market share than Verizon, I'm not sure how Verizon raising prices hurts consumers in an anti-competitive way.
Right now Verizon provides the best service of the four major carriers, and they charge a premium for that. I will stay a Verizon customer until another carrier gives faster data with better coverage, regardless of the price.
-- All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke
If I could move to anyone but Verizon, I would. Unfortunately, no other carrier has decent signal where I live and work. Looks like I'm stuck.