AT&T is joining in on the extra data as wireless competition heats up.
Roger Cheng/CNET
AT&T is getting in on the data bonanza too.
The Dallas telecommunications company said on Saturday that it would
double the amount of data on its shared data plans starting at the
15-gigabyte tier. The promotion, available to both new and existing
customers, begins on Sunday and ends October 31.
The offer is
just the latest promotion from a wireless carrier looking to both defend
its base of customers and attract new ones from rivals. It comes at a
time when No. 4 player T-Mobile leads the competition on subscriber
growth and Sprint, the No. 3 carrier by subscriber, has shown new signs
of life with a new CEO and several new programs of its own. Even top
player Verizon Wireless has gotten into the mix by offering a temporary
boost in data.
The difference with AT&T's plan is that the
doubled data doesn't go away after a specific period of time. Customers
who sign up will keep that their extra data for as long as they remain
on that particular plan.
This comes after Ralph de la Vega, CEO of AT&T's mobility and enterprise business, slammed so-called "exploding plans" where the promotions expire, leaving customers with a lesser plan.
"Those exploding offers -- customers hate those offers," de la Vega
said earlier this month at an investor conference. "Unless they change
their mind, we won't offer those kinds of promotions."
The plans range between 15GB and 50GB, which means the new range is 30GB to 100GB.
Under AT&T's mobile share plan, customers pay a base price for
the voice, text messages and data -- $130 for the cheapest tier and $365
for the most expensive one -- and then pay an additional access charge
for each smartphone on the plan.
If a customer signs up for a
monthly installment plan, called AT&T Next, or brings their own
device, the charge is $15 a line. But if they sign up for a contract,
the charge is $40 a month. Under AT&T Next, a family of four would
have to pay a total of $190 a month for the lowest tier plan, while the
price for four with two-year contracts would cost $290 a month. The
contract price is higher because the carriers subsidize the smartphone
cost, allow customers to pay $200 for what should be a $650 device.
By doubling the data at the 15GB tier and above, AT&T is hoping
to drive customers toward the pricier plans. That boosts revenue without
affecting its profitability. Unchanged is AT&T's four-person, 10GB
plan for $160 a month (that price assumes you've joined AT&T Next,
brought your own device, or paid full price for the phone).
AT&T isn't the only one offering more data. T-Mobile's promotional
four-person, 10GB plan for $100 grants an extra 1.5GB of data per line,
which expires at the beginning of 2015. Verizon Wireless is also
offering 1GB of extra data to customers that sign up for its shared data
plan, but it goes away after two years. Sprint's recent overhaul of its
family plan adds much more data, with its own $160 plan providing 20GB
of data. Updated at 1:32 pm PT:To clarify AT&T's pricing options.
Roger Cheng is the executive
editor in charge of breaking news for CNET News. Prior to this, he was
on the telecommunications beat and wrote for Dow Jones Newswires and The
Wall Street Journal for nearly a decade. He's a devoted Trojan alum and
Los Angeles Lakers fan.
See full bio
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please leave a comment-- or suggestions, particularly of topics and places you'd like to see covered
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please leave a comment-- or suggestions, particularly of topics and places you'd like to see covered