Verizon to offer unlimited voice, data, and messaging packages
By Ryan Block 
posted Feb 17th 2008 8:29PM
posted Feb 17th 2008 8:29PM
We've gotten a flood of tips that the notoriously miserly Verizon is lining things up to offer unlimited calling plans. Starting Tuesday the 19th (of this month) should see the following plans sprout up:- $100 - Nationwide Unlimited (voice)
- $120 - Nationwide Select Unlimited (voice, SMS, MMS)
- $140 - Nationwide Premium (voice, SMS, MMS, VZNav, VCAST, email)
- $150 - Nationwide Email and Messaging (voice, SMS, MMS, and data)
- $170 - Nationwide Global Email and Messaging (voice, SMS, MMS, and international data)
- $200 - Family plan with two lines, $100 per additional line.
- 5GB cap on data is out
- No contract extension for current customers
- Available on one or two year agreements
- All plans include Mobile Web 2.0 portal access (skip it)
- No roaming or long distance
What about tethering?
The prices are a little high compared to what Sprint is offering (everything for $120; everything + tethering for $150)... but both are way too high. IMO: the attractive price point is at half that number ($75/mo for unlimited everything including tethering).
100.00 seems way high when you consider Cricket was recently offering unlimited local/ and nationwide ld for 30.00 per month. No contract. Course if you leave the area you pay roaming charges...
Yup. $50/mo for unlimited everything except tethering is what I believe will be the market sweet spot. And $75/mo with tethering.
Sprint and Verizon are just going to "prove" to the world that they can't sell unlimited service by pricing it at that level. They'll neglect to add "but we might have made it stick by selling it at the prices charged by MetroPCS, Cricket, and Boost".
Dorks.
Holler!!! With this coming around, just a matter of time before AT&T takes the caps off of data again, since it will no longer be an "industry standard" to cap data.
There is that: hopefully the fact that Sprint and Verizon have done this will mean that AT&T will soon follow, even if the prices are just as high.
From there, it's just a matter of competition until the prices drop down to the price that the market will properly bear.
oh, and T-Mobile, too. Part of me expects to see the best prices come from T-Mobile.
Truly a moron arent you? These plans are trulu UNLIMITED voice and UNLIMITED data NATIONWIDE!!! Helio doesnt even come close to even be a contender..
Marni:
Go back to your school, little one. You clearly haven't done your homework. The ONE carrier you picked (helio) does in fact have a nationwide unlimited voice and unlimited data plan, for less $ than either Sprint or Verizon are asking.
Further, "nationwide" service only matters if you'll actually be using it "nationwide". Most people don't travel enough to care about that. In those cases, MetroPCS, Cricket, and Boost's "region" specific plans aren't a _real_ limitation. You can use all 3 on the road for a fee, or use them "unlimited" while near home. For half as much money per month.
The problem for Sprint and Verizon is: they're charging extra for something most people wont need, and they wont want to pay for it. So they'll go with the carriers that give them what they want (unlimited use) on the basis that they need (near home) for far less money.
It doesn't take a genius to see that anywhere MetroPCS, Cricket, or Boost are available, Sprint and Verizon will have to compete with them on those price points ... and at that point, it doesn't make sense to have drastically different rates (twice as much money) based on your zip code ... so they might as well offer those rates wherever they offer the unlimited plans. If they don't, then they're just baiting MetroPCS to expand into those other cities more quickly (and Metro only charges off-network roaming, not roaming when you're in a different MetroPCS city).
One way or the other, the big carriers have to recognize that $100+ for unlimited service isn't going to be a reasonable price point. It'll limit them to a niche market (high income traveling businessmen) at best. And they'll lose everyone else to MetroPCS, Cricket, and Boost.
@ john:
If $100 for unlimited is an "unreasonable" price point, please explain all the customers that VZW, AT&T and Sprint have who gladly pay more than $100 for only 2,000+ minutes?
You are actually thinking that VZW offering unlimited NATIONWIDE calling (nationwide is a lot more common and neccessary than you think) for $100 a month will NOT help them compete against the likes of MetroPCS and Cricket when VZW ALREADY smashes the hell out of them in net adds quarter after quarter by a ridiculous margin without unlimited nationwide calling? Doesn't make any sense.
elgee:
if the big 4 were smashing them, then the unlimited carriers wouldn't be expanding consistently. Even within Sprint, the profitable part of the company is Boost. Clearly the expanding part of the market right now is people for whom "nationwide" isn't the important part of the equation.
With Sprint specifically, they're going to continue to hemorrhage customers with these prices. So they're going to have to lower prices in order to reverse that trend. Then Verizon will have to do the same, in order to keep expanding instead of start losing ground to Sprint.
john:
VZW had 2.1 MILLION net new customers in the 4th quarter of 2007. How many did MetroPCS and Cricket add?
I can't find the official numbers but I do know it's only a couple hundred thousand for each. So yeah, they are likely adding 1/10th what VZW and AT&T add each quarter.
elgee:
1/10 the new customer base, with 1/10 of the native coverage, isn't a bad comparison.
The real stats to look at (which are probably impossible to find): how do their growth rates compare within the same markets.
http://www.digg.com/tech_news/Verizon_to_offer_UNLIMITED_Wireless_Service
So why do $200 for a Family Share?
Just do two $99 Single lines. That way they can both get NE2 credit.
Something doesn't sound right.
but you would probably get some sort of discount on text messaging with a family plan
FYI ~All lines on the Family Share Plan will get the NE2 credit now.
@Dee
Dee, where did you hear this? I did a google search and found nothing on all lines getting NE2
They get the current promotional price (for a new line). Only the primary line gets a $100 credit. Thats my experience at least.
Some places like Best Buy have higher upgrade prices than the new plan prices.
I believe the New Every Two deal says something along the lines of: $100 discount on accounts $39.95 and up or somewhere around that. So if each account was $99.99, they would all probably fall under the NE2 deal.
Yeah its weird doesn't sound right either. At least it is a step in the right direction though.
would data include a blackberry plan?
Sory for the off topic question but is engadget mobile a different site then regular engadget? The comments don't transfer over for the same article.
I don't know if it's a different _site_, but it appears to be a different database for things like stories and comments. Which is kinda lame. It wouldn't take a genius programmer to make articles mirror across front-ends (so that you get 1 comment stream for the same article, no matter which of the site-brands it gets published on).
It's just one of the annoyances of the Engadget family of sites.
Holy crap! I have a Family Share Plan with 3 lines, a Data Plan on one of my lines, unlimited SMS, MMS and 2100 minutes. After taxes and employee discounts I usully pay around $200 a month, so this plan would be a no-go for me. I'm used to paying Verizons high prices but this takes the cake. I am positive that the prices will come down though.
i have essentially the same plan you do and unless its 200 bucks for unlimited everything for 2 lines, it doesn't really make much sense
It is good to see competition finally forcing Verizon (and AT&T very likely )to offer plans like this . The prices should be in the 50-75 range IMO and I think they will be in the not to distant future . Thanks Cricket, MetroPcs and Sprint .
I would be skeptical about where this info is coming from, because the collateral refresh for the stores isn't coming until 3/2/08. Also, a 6000 minute single line is $200, I doubt that Verizon is going to drop monthly access by 50%...
josh, if you know when the collateral refresh is, then you should also have had a few meetings by now telling you about this, so I am skeptical about were YOUR information is coming from.
I a positive prices won't come down
you name the local only, semi national coverage carriers like cricket as if they are really the reason verizon is doing this.
verizon is marketing this idea to the high end user, this isn't for the grass is always greener type who will switch companies to save 10 bucks a month. this is for the high end core user, it will benefit some casual users, but verizon has a lot of people with 6000 minute plans, or people going over their 1350 plans a lot and this needed to be offered
you want unlimited nationwide minutes, no roaming, no long distance, unlimited data, unlimited tethering, unlimited text, unlimited MMS, unlimited Vznav, unlimited mobile email
VS
unlimited minutes, pay for roaming, use minutes while roaming, free text and pix
the above is what verizon offers unlimited, the below is what cricket offers unlimited...wow..GREAT comparison john. You can;t be seriously trying to compare verizon to a crappy local unlimited plan...they are not even in the same state, little on the same ballpark.
And let's mention that Cricket and Metro PCS do not even have 3G.
People say $99.99 for unlimited voice is too high when there are TONS of users with VZW right now on their current $99.99 2000 minute plan or on higher plans. These plans are going to be VERY popular.
@vzwguy
man, i just had to comment on this:
"little on the same ballpark"???????
The phrase is "let alone ... (the same ballpark)"
That was funny. It's like when people write or say "I could care less"; do they ever think about the logic of that statement? It's "I couldn't care less"!
/Rant
Yeah, I jumped to Helio for their 3G unlimited everything $99 dollar plan. Quickly switched back to my original carrier (which is Tmobile). I may evaluate Verizon now. That is AWESOME. i currently pay ~$129/month at Tmobile, using UMA, Unlimited Data, 1500 minutes, MobileToMobile, insurance, tethering, etc. Got Rid of my land line. This deal is much better....AND i get 3G? Time to buy me that Tilt...
I'll wait to see what they say about tethering. If tethering is in (and no silly cap), i am an instant switcher. I was going to wait for Tmobile's Talk Forever(tm) (Hotspot@home) VoIP to come out in March....but might not have to now....
I dont work for verizon but i know verizon is slowly taking out market share. these plans will only help them! it is not good for other carriers becuase when it comes down to it verion makes their money becaus of their coverage something my company does not have.
I must be the only guy left that talks like 250 minutes a month. I text way more then talk. Oh well..... :(
You're not alone. Since everyone I talk to is already on VZW I average less than 200 anytime minutes a month. I do text quite a bit though.
Wow I just had a flashback of my Milk and Cheese comic collection...
MERV GRIFFIN!!!
I just migrated from Tmobile and joined AT&T today due to their pda personal plan for $50/month which includes unlimited messaging and the 900 minutes/month voice plan for $59/month. I looking forward to see if AT&T will come out similar "Unlimited" plan packages.
I imagine they will. They followed suit on the voice/voice+text/voice+text+data orgy. Im certain they will make it a few bucks cheaper.
Side question: Did i read correctly and employee discounts wont be able to apply to these new plans?
You did in fact read correctly that we are not offering employee discount pricing with these plans.
Is like buying a 4 passenger GEO instead of an BMW SUV because its going to give you a better MPG. If you have the money and need the extra space, you will buy the BMW bcause is by far a better car, period. VZW has by far a better network, period!!!