AT&T to raise unlimited data plan pricing to $40 in March
Just over a year after AT&T raised rates for subscribers grandfathered in to unlimited data plans, the company once again intends to bump up prices another $5 per month come March.
Starting in March 2017, AT&T, the nation's second-largest cellular carrier in the U.S., will raise rates for customers subscribed to legacy unlimited data plans from $35 to $40 per month. The rate increase follows an identical $5 per month bump instituted in February 2015.
The latest price hike was spotted earlier this week by DSLReports forum users who received word of the coming rate change via email. The website subsequently confirmed the policy modification with an AT&T representative.
"Our Mobile Share Advantage plans and our AT&T Unlimited Plan provide several benefits that our legacy unlimited plan doesn't. If you have a legacy unlimited data plan, you can keep it; however, beginning in March 2017, it will increase by $5 per month," AT&T said.
When reached for comment, AT&T furnished AppleInsider with the same statement.
Like competing mobile providers, AT&T introduced unlimited data plans years ago to lure in potential smartphone buyers. As the handsets became more popular, and at the same time more data-hungry, carriers replaced all-you-can-eat models with tiered plans. AT&T, the first carrier to offer unlimited data plans for iPhone in 2007, began to roll out capped tiers in June 2010.
In a bid to negate customer churn, telcos allowed subscribers to carry their unlimited plan in perpetuity. Once these grandfathered-in customers switch to a new plan, however, they can never go back.
Starting in March 2017, AT&T, the nation's second-largest cellular carrier in the U.S., will raise rates for customers subscribed to legacy unlimited data plans from $35 to $40 per month. The rate increase follows an identical $5 per month bump instituted in February 2015.
The latest price hike was spotted earlier this week by DSLReports forum users who received word of the coming rate change via email. The website subsequently confirmed the policy modification with an AT&T representative.
"Our Mobile Share Advantage plans and our AT&T Unlimited Plan provide several benefits that our legacy unlimited plan doesn't. If you have a legacy unlimited data plan, you can keep it; however, beginning in March 2017, it will increase by $5 per month," AT&T said.
When reached for comment, AT&T furnished AppleInsider with the same statement.
Like competing mobile providers, AT&T introduced unlimited data plans years ago to lure in potential smartphone buyers. As the handsets became more popular, and at the same time more data-hungry, carriers replaced all-you-can-eat models with tiered plans. AT&T, the first carrier to offer unlimited data plans for iPhone in 2007, began to roll out capped tiers in June 2010.
In a bid to negate customer churn, telcos allowed subscribers to carry their unlimited plan in perpetuity. Once these grandfathered-in customers switch to a new plan, however, they can never go back.
Comments
AT&T's Mobile Share Advantage at the 1GB/month rate (their lowest tier) costs $30/month plus $20 monthly "access charge" if you use "Smartphones, Basic & Messaging Phones" (WTF phone isn't one of these phones?) and it’s a $40 monthly access charge if you are on a 2 year agreement. The 100GB/month tier is $450/month + access charge.
Apparently the several benefits are mostly to AT&T in terms of reduced data and higher prices.
And just as many are switching from Sprint to AT&T because Sprint has offended them in some way. Look ,everybody has some kind of axe to grind against somebody. The facts are that Verizon and AT&T are first and second respectively in the mobile network business and both continue to grow subscribers. There’s got to be a reason that Sprint, T-Mobile are also-rans. And it’s easy to bitch about rates, data caps, throttling, business practices, etc., but in the end they are all similar. It’s just matter of personal perception. These are for-profit companies who built their networks to make money. Sprint will make you grind your teeth at some point too. Verizon is “purging” its high use unlimited data subscribers. Sprint and T-Mobile will eventually follow suit to stay in business. Unlimited data is getting very expensive.
Too many believe there's some legally binding contract that prevents AT&T from raising prices or dropping the plan altogether with the use of grandfathered.
Many do seem to think its some kind of till death contract (which would be way dumb and probably unenforceable).
Bye!
...So Cingular in '01...Unlimited data on your iPhone...
hmmm...i would consider it fully appropriate for AT&T to supply the grandfathered plans with unlimited data at the original data rates @ which you subscribed. Seems logical.
(i was also one of the lucky to be with AT&T through the switch to Cingular & then back to AT&T. now i am with TMobile, because they actually seem to give a sh*t what their customers want, and understand that there are multiple competitors with *very* little actual differences)
Supreme Court has said corporations are people too, so i think DC will just work to give them more power (as per usual).
Build a wall around the swamp! Make the lower class pay for it!
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/att-raising-rates-customers-contracted-rate-second-time
This is worth looking into. That's plenty for me, and could be cheaper than my Corp. discount. BTW once everybody throws in their taxes, doesn't feel so cheap.