VERIZON on Offering Unlimited Data Plans: "F*** That!"

[TXSTYLE]

I don't use Verizon as we get a nice corporate discount thru my wife's company with another carrier. But I know MANY folks who do use them. This is surely a slap in the face...

It comes down to the one thing as usual... Greed. More profits for shareholders and execs and less value for customers.

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/verizon-w...173923606.html

While the wireless industry is moving back to unlimited data, one carrier is not. Verizon chief financial officer Fred Shammo told attendees at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia Conference in New York on Thursday that his company doesn’t think you need it, and slammed current offerings.

“At the end of the day, people don’t need unlimited plans,” Shammo said. While this is not the first time he’s said this — in March he claimed unlimited data “doesn’t work in an LTE environment”, and in 2011 he helped Verizon move away from unlimited plans — it’s now an entirely different market.

Sprint and T-Mobile rolled out one-size-fits-all unlimited plans at the beginning of this month, and AT&T offers unlimited data if customers also subscribe to DirecTV service. But as for Verizon, even as others come to the realization that today’s data limits will not be sustainable for much longer, the company appears to be digging in.

Maybe not surprisingly, as the guy in charge of Verizon’s finances, it does come down to money. Shammo argued that there is no way to “make money in an unlimited video world,” pointing to the restrictions that other companies put on how you can use your data, so as to prevent network overload. In other words, your unlimited plan really isn’t.

Both T-Mobile and Sprint place restrictions on video quality on their unlimited plans, with T-Mobile giving you the capability to upgrade to higher-quality video for $25 more a month. Tethering is also throttled on the basic plans. Verizon says it does not throttle at all. Instead, you just pay for it.

Shammo also pointed the finger at heavy users for the reasons why Verizon still is against unlimited data, saying these customers are the only ones that benefit from these types of plans “and tend to be abusive.” That was often the argument most carriers used just a year ago against unlimited data, but with the explosive growth in streaming content more and more people qualify as heavy users.

A person who spends just 300 minutes per month — think two movies — watching streaming videos eats up 2GB of data, according to Verizon’s own data calculator. Add 60 minutes of streaming audio to and from work and that doubles — and this does not even take into account higher-quality streaming.

The cold reality of streaming’s increasing popularity is likely the reason why T-Mobile rolled out its Music Freedom and Binge On data-free streaming options, and why others like Sprint have followed suit. But not Verizon.

But while slamming unlimited plans, Shammo also left some hope, noting that Verizon is always looking at its competitors, and will “respond when needed.” Let’s hope this isn’t Verizon’s last word on unlimited.

[SSJVegita]

they make valid points. Those plans arent unlimted at all. The minute you reach your cap, u barely even dl at 3g speeds. Your device becomes deproritized as well meaning if you connect to a tower that is over capacitated which happens all the time, say your stuck in traffic you and your unlimted data plan are not even going to be able to watch a low quality you tube video.

People seriously need to actually read your plans tiny print to see what your actually paying for. I am a power user and had tmobile unlimited and i left asap. To summerize my device always was low priority on the towers and I barely could dl at a trickle more or less even 3g......

I switch to verizon and at least i know what I am paying for it and I get the actual date i am paying for whenever I want where ever I want. And with roll over data. I just relaxed for a month or so and used lots of wifi and carried over tons of data to the point i dont ever come close to my monthly cap and keep carrying more over.

[shoei]

Okay so I'm with verizon and I am grandfathered in with unlimited data... They already did three rounds of sifting through all those with unlimited data plans... All they did was remove the people who abused it... the guy using 300gb's a month which is just asinine... We've proven time and time again how we abuse shit... Like, American Airlines and their unlimited first class tickets program back before my time... Man if I had a time machine... 250k was all it cost... anyways, I digress...

Other carriers throttle their plans or you have to pay an additional $25 a month to T-Mobile to be able to stream videos clearer... There's none of that with my verizon plan, but I don't sit there and download movies or create a hotspot for everyone to use...

So you're right... It's greed but greed of the customers who take advantage and abuse it...

[SSJVegita]

yep its just simple advertising tactics. They throw out the word unlimited and people assume they are getting a great deal and completely ignore the small text

[M_Six]

Verizon has to do what it must to make the company as profitable as possible for their shareholders. They're getting better with data. I just went from a 6GB plan to an 8GB plan for just a few dollars more a month and get rollover now. I'll rarely use all the data now that there's a rollover and the speed is usually pretty damn fast. No complaints at all.

[shoei]

Originally Posted by SSJVegita

yep its just simple advertising tactics. They throw out the word unlimited and people assume they are getting a great deal and completely ignore the small text

Yeah it blows my mind how many people don't read the fine print - or, take a story, sensationalized by the media and just run with it... End of the day, no company is perfect... We shouldn't use iPhones because of the shitty workplace the Chinese assembly line workers, or not using Samsung phones cuz they're lighting on fire, or wearing Nike's because of the children who's fingers bled to stitch the sneakers together...

[jtodd_fl]

Originally Posted by shoei

Yeah it blows my mind how many people don't read the fine print - or, take a story, sensationalized by the media and just run with it... End of the day, no company is perfect... We shouldn't use iPhones because of the shitty workplace the Chinese assembly line workers, or not using Samsung phones cuz they're lighting on fire, or wearing Nike's because of the children who's fingers bled to stitch the sneakers together...

Shut it you capitalist corporate shill! They are all evil. EVIL, I say.

[eleven11]

I switched to Google Fi a few months earlier, and been very happy. It's not great for high data users (in terms of cost), but otherwise a solid no-nonsense setup.

[Mr Tonka]

I've been very happy after switching to verizon. Notably faster data streaming, less call drops, better coverage. And still far less expensive than ATT. (12 line business account)

Not to mention, with verizon, they still service the 2 year plans meaning i don't have to finance an $700 phone when i upgrade. Every 2 years, i get a discounted phone for upgrade. With our 12 phones, we get high quality data and more of it for less money than ATT charged us for less service and data.

Added bonus is that i have a Verizon rep who i call whenever i need something like, extra data for a line that is going to be away from wifi for a few weeks, or a line that is going to be over seas for a week.

Actually got $4500 back for switching because we didn't have any balances or contracts on the ATT plan. Score! Add that onto the $150/month lower rate and i'm a happy customer.

[shoei]

Originally Posted by Mr Tonka

I've been very happy after switching to verizon. Notably faster data streaming, less call drops, better coverage. And still far less expensive than ATT. (12 line business account)

Not to mention, with verizon, they still service the 2 year plans meaning i don't have to finance an $700 phone when i upgrade. Every 2 years, i get a discounted phone for upgrade. With our 12 phones, we get high quality data and more of it for less money than ATT charged us for less service and data.

Added bonus is that i have a Verizon rep who i call whenever i need something like, extra data for a line that is going to be away from wifi for a few weeks, or a line that is going to be over seas for a week.

Actually got $4500 back for switching because we didn't have any balances or contracts on the ATT plan. Score! Add that onto the $150/month lower rate and i'm a happy customer.

Like you, I've gone off and tried the other carriers, and I mean all of them at one point or another... Keep coming back to Verizon... She's like that one girlfriend that you took for granted and should've never let go...

I get that in a major city, almost doesn't matter the carrier, as they lease towers off of one another anyways, but the fact remains, I have less issues with Verizon service and customer service wise than any other carrier, but that's what works for me... Maybe at&t works better for someone in their city / state?

I just don't agree with the typical media sensationalism and how people just blindly follow - like ASBSECU E93'a sheep when he's herding them into the barn for the night...

[John 070]

I still have it. They have been charging me an extra $20/mo. The most I ever did was 57gb in a mo. My bro has unlimited with Att. When he crossed 5 gb, he was unable to watch YouTube the rest of the mo. One day, I hope we cut these strings. We are sheep to cellular carriers. At least I get a discount through work.

[jtodd_fl]

Originally Posted by shoei

I just don't agree with the typical media sensationalism and how people just blindly follow - like ASBSECU E93'a sheep when he's herding them into the barn for the night...

He was just helping it over the fence.

[John 070]

Originally Posted by shoei

Like you, I've gone off and tried the other carriers, and I mean all of them at one point or another... Keep coming back to Verizon... She's like that one girlfriend that you took for granted and should've never let go...

I get that in a major city, almost doesn't matter the carrier, as they lease towers off of one another anyways, but the fact remains, I have less issues with Verizon service and customer service wise than any other carrier, but that's what works for me... Maybe at&t works better for someone in their city / state?

I just don't agree with the typical media sensationalism and how people just blindly follow - like ASBSECU E93'a sheep when he's herding them into the barn for the night...

There are a few places where my coworkers cannot use vzw inside the office, but Att and t mobile work fine.

[shoei]

Originally Posted by John 070

There are a few places where my coworkers cannot use vzw inside the office, but Att and t mobile work fine.

Yep, that's a common CDMA issue... Take the trains for instance or subways... GSM far superior in that regard... Oddly enough, outside the US, it's pretty much GSM or similar...

[ASBSECU E93]

I have a grandfathered unlimited plan with Verizon.

Every time I upgrade phones - I make sure they do not fuq with my plan.....

[shoei]

Originally Posted by ASBSECU E93

I have a grandfathered unlimited plan with Verizon.

Every time I upgrade phones - I make sure they do not fuq with my plan.....

You probably still have a Bell Atlantic plan... It's not even Verizon...

[ASBSECU E93]

Originally Posted by shoei

You probably still have a Bell Atlantic plan... It's not even Verizon...

Jelly....of the stock I own from back in the day too

[Mr Tonka]

Originally Posted by shoei

You probably still have a Bell Atlantic plan... It's not even Verizon...

[shoei]

Originally Posted by Mr Tonka

You mean more like this...

[M_Six]

Originally Posted by ASBSECU E93

I have a grandfathered unlimited plan with Verizon.

Every time I upgrade phones - I make sure they do not fuq with my plan.....

My brother is in the same boat. His unlimited plan was with Alltel and they got bought out by VZW, so he's grandfathered in. Watches all his TV online, so he's one of the "abusers" of the system as he eats up a couple hundred GBs per month. He's really careful when dealing with them so as not to give them a reason to switch his plan.

[jtodd_fl]

Originally Posted by ASBSECU E93

I have a grandfathered unlimited plan with Verizon.

Every time I upgrade phones - I make sure they do not fuq with my plan.....

I can't believe you used the term grandfathered. I further can't believe that shoei let it go. He's slipping in HIS dotage.

[M_Six]

During our trip to the UK a couple weeks ago we bought SIM cards for our iPhones so we could text each other and Wifey could keep up with her social media stuff. The SIMs were 15GBP each (about $20) and gave us 100 min talk, 100 text messages, and because they had a special sale, it gave us each 10GB of data. So it was pretty cheap. I don't believe either of us made a single call, but we did do some texting and used a fair amount of data.

The thing that got us was how bad the service was there. Our carrier was ee and their signal sucked over much of the trip. It was entirely useless inside any building. Luckily virtually all public places like hotels and restaurants and stores all have free wifi, so we'd just switch to that if needed.