VZW Petition to Ditch Contracts Nears 100k; Verizon Offers Expensive Payment Plans

[akhenax]

This is useless.

If I can't take my Verizon phone to another carrier, then there is no point. The way it works now, I can't readily take my Verizon GNex to be used on Sprint because of the difference in how the phone talks to the cell tower, the type of CDMA Technology, etc. Whereas TMo, I can take a phone to whomever uses a SimCard.

 

[hotice]

Whereas TMo, I can take a phone to whomever uses a SimCard.

That's not completely true. Yes, you can but TMo and AT&T use different HSDPA frequencies. You'll most likely be stuck with 3G when you switch. Same with LTE, different frequencies than anyone else and your phone will probably only support the carrier you bought it for.

 

[mykl376]

To address the actual OP, when this new plan of Verizon's doesn't sell, they will say, "see, we told you nobody wanted it."

 

[liftedplane]

The irony is these people abusing unlimited data is partly why VZW ended it, and because they obviously can't pay for home broadband VZW had to come-up with a plan to make a new phone affordable for them.

you can't be serious? vzw didn't end unlimted because of people "abusing" it. They did it because they realized the cash cow they were letting go by them with not charging data overages. don't poor verizon and evil data using customers me. I use over 6gb a month on my main line, I NEVER tether it. I simply use it I read news play games stream netfilx and I don't have to ever turn my wifi on. There isn't a single other plan out there that vzw offers that can compare to the one I have that will save me money.

 

[kodiak799]

I don't care how you try to justify it. VZW never intended for their mobile data to be a replacement to home broadband. The fact is bandwidth/spectrum is not an unlimited resource and VZW simply can't continue to offer good service if everyone started using their mobile even when a perfectly suitable wifi connection is available. 2gigs is plenty for the vast majority of users that only use data when they are ACTUALLY mobile.

Also, I'm unaware of VZW taking away unlimited data or raising its price for unlimited users. But continue believing the move was motivated solely, or even mainly, by some giant pot of overages. They don't make their money on overages, and you don't get to be ranked #1 by continually teeing off users by hitting them with overages.

 

[Dalvik_Cache]

Actually, its both. An average Verizon switching office has gigs and gigs of data, and on average no less than four independent fiber providers, for redundancy. You make a reference to 100 gigs being no different than 200, but that's totally untrue. In fact the complete opposite is true. Verizon pays their providers not only for the gigabit-capable connections, but for the overall usage over head. Specifically, if VZW has a 1 Gbps burst-able pipe then its expected that the pipe will on average only persistently carry a percentage of that. If it gets to a point that the pipe hits say 75% consistently then the cost goes up. This is how enterprise level communications work. It doesn't work like your home Internet where you get "unlimited" data and a set throughput.

The relevance of unlimited data users is that some of them simply don't care how much they use, and occasionally even download large content with that "just cause I can" attitude. I'm a fan of unlimited, but abuse of unlimited packages is a real problem. If you're one of those people, congrats you're why we can't have nice things.

HMMMM, somewhat true but not entirely. Data users cant actually 'abuse' the system, thats lingo companies brainwash people with to make themselves look like a victim. Actually, data is measured by the number of users, not the amount each user using. For example, in a big city such as NY with 100 people using a tower at 1 gig each (100 gigs) is no different then 100 people using 2 gigs (200 gigs). The data is transferred per user signal on that tower not how much each user uses because each user in essence uses the same amount of data because data only transfers at a set (constant and independent) speed...

IF that makes sense

 

[liftedplane]

I don't care how you try to justify it. VZW never intended for their mobile data to be a replacement to home broadband. The fact is bandwidth/spectrum is not an unlimited resource and VZW simply can't continue to offer good service if everyone started using their mobile even when a perfectly suitable wifi connection is available. 2gigs is plenty for the vast majority of users that only use data when they are ACTUALLY mobile.

Also, I'm unaware of VZW taking away unlimited data or raising its price for unlimited users. But continue believing the move was motivated solely, or even mainly, by some giant pot of overages. They don't make their money on overages, and you don't get to be ranked #1 by continually teeing off users by hitting them with overages.

I don't replace my home broadband you git, I use my phone outside of my home which is 90% of my day and I rarely have a viable wifi connection available. I don't tether on my phone because I don't need to the note 2 does everything I need.

Verizon has taken away unlimited in a way they never did before, they aren't ripping it away from people so much as not allowing you to keep it if you upgrade, they've never pulled tactics like that and have always allowed for people to stay grandfathered in. It's not an option now unless you upgrade in another manner or buy the phone outright. Verizon doesn't make their money solely from overages but there is a huuuge amount of income generated from it that they were missing out on with unlimited data, it's the same as assume if those ridiculous atm fees charged by banks.

And if 2 gigs is plenty for most users why the cap? Allow unlimited and there won't be a problem, oh that's right no overage fees or extra money from those of us who need a higher tier.

Go ahead and justify the consumer price gouging tactics of Verizon all you want. I'm keeping my unlimited until they pry it out of my hands and then I'll change carriers regardless of coverage.

---
I hate jelly beans, Google's jellybean is alright though.

Sent from my sickeningly sweet Galaxy Note II

 

[kodiak799]

I don't replace my home broadband you git, I use my phone outside of my home which is 90% of my day and I rarely have a viable wifi connection available. I don't tether on my phone because I don't need to the note 2 does everything I need.

Congrats. But I fail to see how that's an argument against anything I said. It's not an unlimited resource, supply and demand dictates you'll pay more. I'm almost tempted to ask what the heck you do for a living that you're racking up that kind of data usage and watching that much netflix.

Verizon doesn't make their money solely from overages but there is a huuuge amount of income generated from it that they were missing out on with unlimited data, it's the same as assume if those ridiculous atm fees charged by banks.

The pot is nothing like "huuuuge". The overages are such that they are HIGHLY effective in people regulating their usage. It's punative. It's very effective in discouraging you from going over, and provides strong incentive to upgrade for people that need more. Intramonth plan changes are prorated, which again shows they aren't trying to gouge with overages but have you pay for the plan you need.

It's also true that they pay the pipe providers for access. Read Mandy's post above. If everyone had unlimited and realized they'd save money ditching broadband, you think the guys that own the pipes aren't going to jack-up prices on VZW? As VZW's costs increase, who should pay that - the people that use 1 gig/mo or the people using 6+?

Price gouging is illegal. It's funny to watch people throw that term out in derision when they don't really understand what it is or how it's executed simply because they feel they are entitled to be paying less.

 

[Dalvik_Cache]

And if 2 gigs is plenty for most users why the cap? Allow unlimited and there won't be a problem, oh that's right no overage fees or extra money from those of us who need a higher tier.

Its because Americans don't know how to say no. If you give them unlimited they will use or waste it. Why do you think America is 10 times more obese than any other country in the world? The way Verizon and other carriers do business in the United States is because of the American culture.

It's the entitlement mentality. Network resources are not free or unlimited. Verizon is not the government, they are a private company and are not required to have a welfare program.

Alternatively, it's a free market system, if you disagree with Verizon's business policies, pricing, or the way they wear their pants you're welcome to leave.


Sent from my HTC6435LVW using Tapatalk 2

 

[TatDroid]

As the OP and others here have said, unless Verizon lowers the monthly fee by $15/month or so, (the amount they no longer have to pay each month to subsidise the cost of your phone) there is absolutely zero benefit to the customer of any of these off-contract "deals".

 

[kodiak799]

...there is absolutely zero benefit to the customer of any of these off-contract "deals".

What matters is the PERCEIVED benefit. People living paycheck-to-paycheck just eat-up these predatory offerings.

 

[skennelly]

Its because Americans don't know how to say no. If you give them unlimited they will use or waste it. Why do you think America is 10 times more obese than any other country in the world? The way Verizon and other carriers do business in the United States is because of the American culture.

It's the entitlement mentality. Network resources are not free or unlimited. Verizon is not the government, they are a private company and are not required to have a welfare program.

Alternatively, it's a free market system, if you disagree with Verizon's business policies, pricing, or the way they wear their pants you're welcome to leave.


Sent from my HTC6435LVW using Tapatalk 2

It drives me nuts when people spout off their opinions as fact.

un·lim·it·ed
/ˌənˈlimitid/
Adjective
Not limited or restricted in terms of number, quantity, or extent.
(of a company) Not limited.
Synonyms
boundless - unbounded - limitless - infinite

Really not sure where anyone gets the idea that 6+ gigs of data usage on an UNLIMITED data plan is excessive.

Also not sure why so many people cannot comprehend the term unlimited.

 

[jseah]

Really not sure where anyone gets the idea that 6+ gigs of data usage on an UNLIMITED data plan is excessive.

But what about those who push through 200+ GB of data usage on their unlimited data plan on a monthly basis, just because they can? Do you then consider that excessive?

Obviously, it is a little of both (well, mostly a decision by Verizon to soak their customers for more money). With video streaming, cloud storage, etc., people have and will obviously use more and more data over time. Back when I got my very first smartphone, a Blackberry Pearl, I used the phone solely for email. With the efficient Blackberry compression, I averaged between 8-10 MB per month. A year later, I replaced that with the Blackberry Curve. My data usage slowly crept up over time and I was averaging about 25-30 MB per month. Then came the Blackberry Storm. Data usage then averages about 75 MB per month. Then the world changed with the introduction of the Motorola Droid. My data usage spiked up to around 150-175 MB per month. As the OG Droid then got replaced with the HTC Thunderbolt and LTE became available, my data usage doubled to average around 350 MB per month. That got replaced by the Rezound and now replaced by the Galaxy Note 2. I don't do video streaming (no Netflix, no Youtube), but I do check email, have pictures taken with the camera automatically uploaded to Google+, sync Facebook, have a weather widget, etc. I now average about 1.30-1.5 GB per month. I don't tether, and while I could, I very rarely connect the phone to WiFi at home.

With our 5 smartphone lines, combined we use about 11 GB per month. We are the customers that Verizon is really targeting the data share and metered data plans towards. We are right at the cusp of reaching the "limit", so while it may be tempting to switch because it may cost the same now, in the long run it will cost us more.

 

[kodiak799]

Also not sure why so many people cannot comprehend the term unlimited.

It's unlimited, subject to the TOS. Really not sure why some people cannot comprehend that.

 

[skennelly]

It's unlimited, subject to the TOS. Really not sure why some people cannot comprehend that.

Well then, that's not really unlimited then, is it?

I may be mistaken, but the TOS doesn’t restrict the amount of data that can be used on the unlimited plan, but rather how the data is consumed. Meaning, you can use as much as you like as long as you're not tethering.