Verizon Is Now Selling Unlimited Data In 30-Minute Increments (theverge.com)

Verizon has unveiled a new pay-as-you-go unlimited mobile data offering yesterday called PopData that has some significant strings attached. The option charges you $2 for 30 minutes or $3 for 60 minutes of unlimited internet data. The Verge reports: Think of it like a microtransaction or in-app purchase in a mobile game, where you can't enjoy the full benefits of a product you ostensibly already own or pay for without ponying up a few extra bucks. There does appear to be some legitimate reasons to want unfettered data access for a short amount of time. For instance, perhaps you know you'll be downloading large files to your phone like numerous Spotify playlists, or maybe you want to enjoy an uninterrupted stream of a sports game or Netflix movie without having to worry about your data cap. But there's no telling really whether this is a good or bad deal, as it complicates how we think of the value of data by blending a monthly bucket metaphor with that of a time-based subscription system. This wouldn't be such a big deal if customers could simply pay for unlimited data every month. Yet Verizon -- unlike ATT, T-Mobile, and Sprint -- does not offer customers a standard unlimited plan, and the company has made an effort to kick users off their grandfathered plans in the past.

Comments

Bleed The Junkies.

[zenlessyank]

I love Corporations. They are the greatest evar. No conscience. No feelings. Just pure greed.

UNICODE, MOTHERFUCKER

[Anonymous Coward]

DO YOU SPEAK IT?

"Unlimited"

[Narcocide]

Unlimited (TM) bandwidth for a limited amount of time! The demographics say the majority of you have poor enough vocabulary skills you'll actually fall for this! Hilarious, seriously. I'd be laughing about it if I wasn't crying about it. What do the FTC and FCC even do these days?

Unlimited?

[rsilvergun]

You keep using that word. I don't think that it means what you think it means.

Re:As a Verizon subscriber...

[Dutch Gun]

Obviously, it's not truly "unlimited" (hint: nothing is), but

Then maybe they should stop using that word in their advertisement of services. Most other industries get called out if they outright lie in advertisements. Pretty sure there are even laws about it. Why the special pass for carriers and ISPs?

Re:As a Verizon subscriber...

[Dutch Gun]

Yeah, I love* the way they do that.

* The term "love" shall in no way be construed to contain any positive connotation or endorsement, nor does it imply any emotional attachment to a faceless corporation who only cares only about sucking every last dollar from their customers.