Verizon CEO says shared data plans probably coming next year
Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam expects the company to begin offering shared data plans for smartphones, combining the plans for different devices on the same account into a single plan.
McAdam's comments came during an interview during the UBU Global Media Conference. He indicated the company expects smartphone penetration, currently at around 40%, to eventually reach around 70% of Verizon Wireless customers.
In addition, with the introduction of more services, including video, for mobile devices, he believes tablet use will also grow significantly. As those things happen, he sees shared data plans as both a convenience for the customer and a cost saving measure for the company.
In the interview he said:
I think in 2012 we'll see it. We've been working on this for a couple of years frankly... because we see four screens or even five screens. If you look at all the machine to machine capabilities that are out there, customers don't want - and neither do we by the way - want an individual account for each one of those devices. It drives them crazy and would raise our costs a lot so getting to one bill and having account level pricing is the way to go.
This is definitely a step in the right direction, but keep in mind there was no mention of lowering prices with this consolidation. The reality is, even if you are only using a small portion of your data plan now, as applications for mobile devices increases, so will the data usage.
Where this potentially becomes useful later is to provide consumers with a clearer picture of just how much they are really spending for data. It's one thing to look at your bill and see that you are paying $30 for one device, which is the current Verizon rate for 2GB per month.
It's something else to look at a combined rate which includes multiple devices and realize you're paying significantly more for mobile data than for your home Internet connection. If McAdam truly wants customers to utilize services like streaming video, current pricing is simply too high a barrier to overcome for most people.
Written by: Rich Fiscus @ 8 Dec 2011 4:08
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KillerBug
Does this mean that they will allow free tethering on plans that have data caps anyway???
8.12.2011 05:11 #1
Again........Verizon is a shitty shady company and like ATT.......they have 11 year old, antiquated, outdated plans that never changed with the times. This raping is what lines their poo-filled pockets. Once they both get with the program and ditch their 59.99/900 minutes plans with 30 bucks for ANY "usable" data plan, ONLY THEN will they be attractive.
However, sheeple will continue to think Verizon is the beez kneez even though they NEVER EVER EVER leave their metro area to put "the best network" to test.
ThePastor
Cell phones did not become realistic until they quit charging by the minute and started offering affordable plans that included enough minutes to be useful.
Once they made that change cellphones became ubiquitous.
The same thing will (needs to) happen with other devices like tablets.
The current pricing plans by the cell-phone companies are just unacceptable. When they become realistic, tablets will explode.
Unfortunately for them, all Blu-ray protections have been broken and BD rips can be found around the Internet, usually before the retail even hits shelves.