Basking Ridge, N.J. — Verizon Wireless will no longer offer customers unlimited data service plans beginning July 7, and instead will introduce different tiers of service at different price points.
After weeks of speculation, including an Android Central prediction that proved accurate, Verizon officially announced the level and pricing for each tier. Demands on data usage have increased as iPhones, Android devices and other smartphones gain market share.
The move leaves Sprint Nextel Corp. as the only major carrier to offer unlimited data plan, AT&T Inc. and T-Mobile USA already having tiered service in place.
The current price for unlimited data with Verzion Wireless is $30 on most plans. From now on, customers will get a maximum of 2 GBs a month for that price. while those who use up to 10 GBs are required to pay $80 a month. According to Reuters, streaming two hours of music on a cellular device generates 3.5 GB of data downloads a month — requiring the user to pay $50 a month for the tier that allows up to 5 GB. Customers who use more than their allotment will be charged $10 more for each additional GB.
Those who already have an unlimited data plan will be grandfathered in and will not have to change to a tiered plan after July 7. However any change in service, such as adding an additional line, will terminate the unlimited data plan.
Verizon Wireless has posted a calculator that customers can use to help determine which service tier is most appropriate for their personal usage pattern.
“The risk you run, I guess, is that people balk at caps and move to carriers that don’t cap data,” said Pacific Crest analyst Steve Clement. “People make carrier decisions for lots of reasons. I don’t know if the amount of data is high on your list.”
Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/43ejp5b (Android Central)
http://tinyurl.com/3od55o7 (Reuters)
http://tinyurl.com/34ndgn7 (Verizon data calculator)
