By Roger Yu, USA TODAY
Verizon Wireless, the nation's largest wireless carrier, is dramatically overhauling its service plans, replacing the entire lineup
with a new set that focuses on devices sharing a bucket of data.
The
new "Share Everything Plans," which will be sold starting June 28,
include unlimited voice minutes and text, including video and picture
messaging, as well as a single, capped data allotment for up to 10
devices. For new customers, these plans will replace its current tiered
pricing plans that charge based on the amount of voice minutes and data
consumed.
"This is a bold move and directed at high-end
customers," says Roger Entner, an analyst at Recon Analytics. "The
carriers have tens of thousands of different permutations of plans. With
this, it's really simple."
Under the new pricing structure, a
smartphone customer opting for the cheapest data bucket, 1 gigabyte
(GB), will pay $90 before taxes and fees ($40 for a phone "access" fee
and $50 for 1 GB). Customers can also add a basic call-only phone,
laptop and tablet to share their data allotment for $30, $20 and $10,
respectively.
The data allotments will come in six buckets, ranging in prices from $50 for 1 GB to $100 for 10 GB.