AT&T makes sweeping changes to data plans, iPhone tethering coming at OS 4 launch
By Chris Ziegler 
posted June 2nd 2010 3:00AM
posted June 2nd 2010 3:00AM
You might think that AT&T would hold off for a national HSPA+ deployment or a full-on LTE launch before tweaking its data pricing strategy, but not so much -- the carrier is coming out swinging today with some significant changes that should benefit the overwhelming majority of its smartphone users (and could stand to harm a select few). Let's break down the major points:DataPlus / DataPro
- The existing $30 fair-use "unlimited" smartphone data plan is being replaced by two new options: $15 per month for 200MB and $25 for 2GB (called "DataPlus" and "DataPro," respectively). Customers currently on the $30 plan are welcome to stay on it, but they can switch at any time without extending their contract.
- AT&T's new overage system is arguably the game changer: on the $15 plan, you'll pay $15 for each additional 200MB, but on the $25 plan, you'll pay $10 for each additional GB. It's simple and straightforward -- but most importantly, it won't bankrupt you if you go over by a gig or three in a month. This compares to $50 per gigabyte of overage on AT&T's 5GB DataConnect plan for laptops.
- The carrier's going to be very flexible about changing between the DataPlus and DataPro plans -- if you're on DataPlus, for example, and you discover that you're blowing past your allotment, you can choose either to start DataPro the following billing cycle, pro-rate it, or apply the higher plan retroactively to the beginning of your current billing cycle. That's pretty wild.
Tethering
- Tethering will be offered as an add-on to the DataPro plan for an additional $20 per month, which means you'll pay a total of $45 a month for 2GB of data shared between your phone and your tethered devices. If you're light on the usage, it's a sweet deal -- but if you scale it up and you're using the data almost exclusively on your laptop, it compares unfavorably to the traditional DataConnect plan: $60 versus $75 for 5GB (and in the unlikely even you've got a webOS device on Verizon, it compares even less favorably). If you're striking a balance of data use between a smartphone and tethered gear, AT&T's new setup is still pretty solid considering that you would've been paying $60 for the USB stick plus $30 for smartphone data before.
- Yes, it's finally happening: AT&T's iPhones will get access to the tethering option, too.
iPad
- iPad users are also affected by the change. The $30 iPad data plan -- lauded for being labeled by AT&T as truly unlimited -- goes away to be replaced by the same $25 / 2GB plan that smartphone users will see, though current subscribers to the $30 plan can continue unaffected.
We're definitely mourning the death of unlimited data -- "unlimited" is a word that consumers always naturally like to hear -- but AT&T points out that 98 percent of its smartphone subscribers use less than 2GB a month, which means that nearly all users ultimately stand to see a $5 reduction in their monthly bills. We spoke to Mark Collins -- AT&T Mobility's senior vice president of data and voice products -- about the changes for a few clarifications on the company's strategy, and he made it crystal clear that the concept of unlimited data is a thing in the past (echoing comments made recently by Verizon's Lowell McAdam), particularly in light of the oncoming spectrum crunch that stands to make wireless broadband an even more precious commodity than it already is. He also mentioned that laptop plans are unaffected by this move, though he went on to say that they've laid a "framework" for data pricing here that should continue all the way through to the company's LTE rollout, so we wouldn't be surprised to see some tweaks made on the laptop side sooner or later (to reduce overage fees, if nothing else).
We mentioned that the change stands to hurt a few users, and it's true -- we're extremely heavy smartphone users here, for example, and we're hard-pressed to break even a gigabyte of usage in a month; anyone doing a boatload of video streaming though, or lacking access to WiFi at home and the office (AT&T's quick to boast about its 20,000-odd hotspots) might find themselves regularly slamming headlong into that 2GB cap, and there won't be any option but to buy overage. For what it's worth, Collins pointed out to us that the plans will feature automatic text and email alerts at 65, 90, and 100 percent usage of your monthly allowance (and at 75 and 100 percent usage of each overage purchase), so it should be pretty easy to keep an eye on things and make sure you don't break the bank.
AT&T ANNOUNCES NEW LOWER-PRICED WIRELESS DATA PLANS TO MAKE MOBILE INTERNET MORE AFFORDABLE TO MORE PEOPLE
DALLAS, June 2, 2010 - AT&T*, the U.S. smartphone leader, today introduced new wireless data plans that make it more affordable for more people to enjoy the benefits of the mobile Internet. Customers can pick the new data plan that best meets their needs - either a $15 per month entry plan or a $25 per month plan with 10 times more data. Current smartphone customers are not required to switch to the new plans, but can choose to do so without a contract extension.
"AT&T helps mobilize everything on the Internet - your favorite web sites, TV shows, music, games and social networks. Virtually everything previously done while sitting at a computer can now be done on the go," said Ralph de la Vega, president and CEO, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. "To give more people the opportunity to experience these benefits, we're breaking free from the traditional 'one-size-fits-all' pricing model and making the mobile Internet more affordable to a greater number of people."
Each plan includes unlimited access at no additional charge to more than 20,000 AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots in the U.S. Customers can also use unlimited Wi-Fi at home, in the office or elsewhere if available. AT&T will also help customers manage their wireless data usage by sending free text messages when customers reach different usage intervals, and by providing online tools, including a smartphone app that shows monthly usage information.
The new wireless data plans - including a new tethering option - will be available beginning June 7. Current AT&T voice and texting plans are unchanged.
More Choice
The new AT&T plans provide large amounts of data to enable people to enjoy their favorite online activities:
* DataPlus. Provides 200 megabytes (MB) of data - enough to send/receive 1,000 emails (no attachments), send/receive 150 emails with attachments, view 400 Web pages, post 50 photos on social media sites and 20 minutes of streaming video - for just $15 per month. This plan, which can save customers up to 20 percent off their wireless voice and data charges, is designed for people who primarily like to surf the web, send email and use social networking apps. If customers exceed 200 MB in a monthly billing cycle, they will receive an additional 200 MB of data usage for $15 for use in the month. Currently, 65 percent of AT&T smartphone customers use less than 200 MB of data per month on average.
* DataPro. Provides 2 gigabytes (GB) of data - enough to send/receive 10,000 emails (no attachments), send/receive 1,500 emails with attachments, view 4,000 Web pages, post 500 photos to social media sites and watch 200 minutes of streaming video - for $25 per month. Should a customer exceed 2 GB during a billing cycle, they will receive an additional 1 GB of data for $10 for use in the month. Currently, 98 percent of AT&T smartphone customers use less than 2 GB of data a month on average.
* Tethering. Smartphone customers - including iPhone customers - who choose the DataPro plan have the option to add tethering for an additional $20 per month. Tethering enables customers to use their smartphone as a modem to provide a broadband connection for laptop computers, netbooks or other computing devices. Tethering for iPhones will be available when Apple releases OS 4.0 this summer.
With the new wireless data plans, pricing for a smartphone voice and data bundle now starts at just $54.99 per month for an individual plan, or $24.99 per month for an additional line on a FamilyTalk plan, $15 per month less than the price of the previous entry level bundle.
For new iPad customers, the $25 per month 2 GB plan will replace the existing $29.99 unlimited plan. iPad customers will continue to pre-pay for their wireless data plan and no contract is required. Existing iPad customers who have the $29.99 per month unlimited plan can keep that plan or switch to the new $25 per month plan with 2 GB of data.
Wi-Fi at 20,000 AT&T Hot Spots
The vast majority of smartphones that AT&T offers have built-in Wi-Fi, which lets the devices automatically switch from the wireless network to a Wi-Fi hotspot without prompting, making Wi-Fi even more convenient and easy to use. This enables customers to use Wi-Fi in the home, office and at public locations where available. Using Wi-Fi does not count against a customer's monthly data plan usage total. In addition, virtually all AT&T smartphone customers have access at no additional charge to more than 20,000 AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots at Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, and other U.S. locations. Customers can get more information on how to use Wi-Fi and find the location of AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots at www.att.com/wifiaccess.
Monitoring and Managing Usage
To help customers easily check their data usage, AT&T has made the information readily available in a number of ways:
* Customer Text Notifications On Data Usage. When customers begin to approach their monthly usage limit, AT&T will send three text notifications - when they reach 65 percent, 90 percent and 100 percent of the threshold. Customers will also be sent emails if AT&T has their email address.
* Data Usage Monitoring. Additionally, customers with iPhones and other select devices can use the free AT&T myWireless application to check data usage. The application is available for download in several smartphone app stores. Also, AT&T customers can call *DATA# from their wireless phone to check their data usage for the current billing period. They receive a free text message with their usage information. Customers can also go online to www.att.com/wireless to see all their usage information, past and present.
* Data Calculator. The easy-to-use online data calculator enables customers to estimate their mobile data usage and get a better sense for which data plan is right for them. It's located at www.att.com/datacalculator.
Customers can learn more about the new plans online at www.att.com/dataplans, by contacting AT&T customer service at 1-800-331-0500, or by visiting an AT&T retail store.
AT&T expects these new data plans to have minimal revenue impact this year and to not affect previous guidance for 2010.
@soda51
So what about people who genuinely could use the tethering? Paying the extra $20 if you dont want to JB, ATT is still not providing at least a few extra gigs along with it. 2gb is just not enough. Browsing regular sites you can burn through 2 gigs in a day easy. They are just screwing people on all ends. I dont see any value to that,
@Cg006 I browse sites all day, watch videos, play networked games, use GPS, and I haven't been able to steadily break 1GB a month on my phone. How are you breaking 2GB a day from browsing?
@Cg006
I agree. i think the tether charge is BS..internet is internet..they have no right to tell you how to use it! how bout the cable companies start saying..if your television is more than 40 inches you gotta pay 20 dollars more...hmm its still the same cable signal...pretty shitty of ATT!
how bout mcdonalds charges you more for the #1 if your over a certain weight limit...
Dominoes charge extra on the delivery fee cuz you got more than 2 people eatin the pizza!
at what point does it become bullshit when you get charged more for consuming the very same thing..especially thru the same device..whats it matter to them if what we are browsing is being displayed on our phones or our laptops!
Everyone is talking about Sprint or T Mobile. My iphone will be out of contract in December. If I jailbroke it , would it work on either of those companies?
I live in Wy though...not even sure we have coverage here.
I am guessing the one feature that would not work would be virtual vm.
So I can get the new iPhone with only $15 monthly charge for the internet?
@bati555
yah but depending on what internet site you go 2...like for example..going to cnn.com..(not actual number) can cause you to use like 1 Mb..now say you watch a video on cnn.com you just used 5Mb more...then you go watch a few videos on youtube..you just used 15Mb more...then you download a 30 Mb's worth of apps from the the app store..then a few songs from the itunes store..then a couple books from the bookstore..and then to top it all off you send a few emails with pics attached to them..you just used at least 100Mb which is half of your monthly allowance...lets say the next day you use the other half..then you say ok..im not gunna use the internet for the rest of the month..if you have emails set up on your phone...your not gunna stop them from coming are you..thats uses internet..what happens if you open a game that has ads..that uses internet...you submit your score for a game..that uses internet..you check weather or stocks etc..that uses internet b4 you know you have 100's of dollars in overages and your screwed!
@bati555
ps..not to mention if you wanna check out the new Video chat feature! which will use a crazy amount of internet per minute!
I know this sounds odd, but I'm a Sprint employee that is switching to AT&T for an iPhone on the 7th because my family is on AT&T. Honestly, I'm not sure what to think about these changes. The fortunate thing is that with an AT&T family plan, and these new data changes, it ends up being cheaper for me than my Sprint plan even after my 22% discount. The unfortunate thing is that 1) I have so much hatred for AT&T I can't describe it in words. 2) I have no option of getting a plan equivalent to the one I have now on Sprint.
The AT&T service is great by me northwest of Chicago though so... I dunno, I just can't wait until customers ask me what phone I have and I whip out an iPhone. :P
Only Engadget would try to put a positive spin on this
ruh roh....I used 6.7 Gigs on Verizon this month with 8 days left in my cycle. I'm using a Droid.
I would be screwed under this pricing scheme.
@Bobbo These guys are *really* screwed:
http://www.evdoforums.com/thread12507.html
@Bobbo
Do you mind me asking what you do on your phone? Watch youtube?? I have a Palm Pre Plus on verizon. I download youtube videos a lot and stuff, but i think im around 1Gb now for the past 2 weeks or so.
Data to include Rollover also???
It irks me that tethering is a paid feature. It doesn't put an extra load on their network since with or without tethering, we still have a 2GB cap. Also, I'm doubting video conferencing as a feature because that 2GB limit would easily be reached with a little bit of video chat. Maybe it will be built into the hardware itself, but practically, it's impossible with the data cap.
@jckchn
And there's where they screw you. Just like tethering, they screw you out of your unlimited data plan. And with video chat, they screw you by making you pay more for going over.
Here's a messagee to wireless carriers. If I have to put up with non-unlimited data, I'm going prepaid. If I have to limit my data usage, I won't be limiting myself by being tied to contracts anymore.
And by the way, I don't think I've ever used 1GB or more of wireless data but it's not about using 10GB or 1 GB or < 100 MB. It's about not having to worry about how much data I use!
@CeluGeek
Exactly, if we aren't using that much, why do they care? They get 'more money' apparently by having an unlimited plan if '98%' on customers are using less than 2GB. We are paying $5 extra for assurance that we will not receive some outrageous overcharge IF we do go over.
You can get an unlimited (like, really unlimited) HSDPA 3G connection including free tethering for about 10 dollar here in Europe..
500 mins, unltd texting, unltd data 50 bucks on t-mobile.
This actually will be a good thing and force data hungry users to pay like they weigh....
"Frontin a$$ rappers"
http://thisiswhyubroke.wordpress.com/2010/05/15/frontin-a-rappers/
@ThisIsWhyUBroke
thats just stupid!..who is a data hungry user on a cell phone!! the point is, if you didnt use 2gb a month b4...with the new video chat and tethering features..your guaranteed to go past it...therefore probably racking up hundreds of dollars in overage charges!
AT&T. Rethink Possible. Yeah, how much more possible could it be for AT&T to screw you over.
I'm an AT&T employee and I'm going to switch to T-MO! Screw the employee discount!
@michealsmith
You my friend are my hero! What phone do you plan on getting?
Will my wife and I, as current holder of two $30 per month for unlimited data plans using two Windows Mobile phones (AT&T Tilt I), be able to keep those plans rather than have to buy a new limited data plan when I purchase two iPhones OS 4 when they become available because of if grandfathering the unlimited plans works only if you stay with the same operating system? I'm no longer on a contract and am eligible for phone upgrades, but the current (until Monday) unlimited data plan for the iPhone is named differently than that for the Windows Mobile devices.
ok...i think its time for a new carrier...hellloooo tmobile
What's someone like me suppose to use? I just looked online and I used 6.1GB for May 2010. That's $40 in extra GB's from just the phone, Lord only knows how high it would be if I was tethering.
i'm with "whizpup" i was gonna save up get 2 new iphone come oct but noo at&t had be a little bitch and screwed all there customers. that like goin out buy a new car but cant go far befor you run out of gas, "whizpup" im gonna stand up 'here come a lift n a right ohhh tko' at&t that got to hurt. and the winner is sprint, yeah you save $5.00 but you lose 3gb how that saveing u money.....? now i will get 2 evo sprint here i come woo hooooo.
I have been waiting for the new iphone. It is killing me that I have to sign-up with AT&T. I left them 3 years ago for t-mobile because of their outrageously poor customer service. Based on this new data plan, a plan they have to implement because of all the dropped calls and complaints of network failure, the users will suffer. AT&T can't handle the traffic and they didn't plan well for the iphone success. Jobs is honoring a failed contract and should open the iphone to any company that will support it. Now, I will NOT get an iphone because of the failed carriers ability to provide accessibility at a user friendly rate. I hope AT&T gets cancer and dies!!
"new features of the iPhone and iPad, which run on the AT&T network, seemed designed to consume more data. They will allow multitasking so a person could play music while reading e-mail. And it won’t take much to hit the limits with video. Download an hour-long TV show to a smartphone or tablet and you’ve used 550 megabytes, or well over a quarter of your monthly allotment. Streaming a two-hour movie from Netflix consumes 300 megabytes." Over a quarter of your monthly allotment when having the 2G data plan for $25.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/technology/07data.html?hpw
I hope everyone keeps their unlimited plan. Think about the future and where mobile phones are going. HD movies, streaming movies, multi-tasking with several data intensive apps, and video chat are pointless with a 2G data plan. AT&T are omitting this information to get those who are uniformed to switch to these new plans, so they'll make more money than ever before when the new iPhone comes out and the phones to come in the for-future. Keep your unlimited plans people, thank you.
"Spectrum crunch"? Is that like how the infrastructure of the Internet was supposed to be in danger of imminent collapse because so many people were streaming media over it? Obviously, that never happened and I doubt this "spectrum crunch" will happen either, even if everyone gets iPhones, iPads, Droids and BlackBerries.
The removal of unlimted data and the introduction of metered is just another way for the carriers to restrict what we do on their rickety networks (God forbid they spend the money to upgrade their equipment, add pipes and servers, etc.) and to nickel and dime us. "Oh, that user went over 2 GB, sock 'em with an overage fee!"
AT&T and any other carrier that takes away our unlimited bandwidth can get bent!