Remember T-Mobile and Verizon's price hikes over the last few months? AT&T will be dropping a similar ball for its old unlimited plans as well. Brace yourself for higher bills folks, whether you’re on a single-line or multi-line plan. And the company’s best damage control strategy for the upcoming user outcry? More high-speed and hotspot data it seems.
Price Hikes and Affected Plans
Starting with August 2024 bills, single-line customers will face a $10 monthly increase, while multiple-line customers will see a $20 increase on their overall bill. The affected plans include a wide range of AT&T's legacy offerings, such as AT&T Unlimited & More, Unlimited Choice, Unlimited Plus, and several others.
In an effort to appease its customer base, AT&T attempts to counter by offering increased high-speed and hotspot data allowances as the increased costs roll in. For example, you get an additional 75GB of high-speed data and 30GB of hotspot data for:
- AT&T Unlimited Choice
- Choice II
- Choice Enhanced
- Unlimited & More
- Unlimited Value
While you get 100GB of high-speed data and 60GB of hotspot data for:
- AT&T Unlimited Plus
- Plus Enhanced
- Unlimited & More Premium
- AT&T Unlimited with TV
The Steep Hill of Paid Subscriptions
AT&T's decision to raise prices on older unlimited plans is part of a larger trend in the wireless industry. These carriers boil the water ever so slowly so to speak, in the form of progressive price hikes over an extended period of time.
Inflation is a normal thing, of course. However, the push towards these newer plans seems more driven by other internal factors, including ongoing investment in network infrastructure, the introduction of new features and services, plus the desire to increase revenue per user.
As such, the continued expansion of 5G networks that offer more (questionable) advanced services makes these carriers more and more likely to focus on justifying higher price tags for their latest plan offerings.
Other Options for Affected Users
Aside from the added benefits, AT&T also presents customers with three main options: keep their current plan (with the added data benefits), switch to any of the newer plans (Unlimited Premium PL, Unlimited Extra EL, or Unlimited Starter SL), or cancel the service altogether.
As you can see from the options, not only have prices increased on older plans, but the carrier is also actively promoting its latest offerings as “superior” alternatives to older plans.
For customers on affected legacy plans, the optimal move would probably be to just carefully evaluate their current usage habits. True, while the added data benefits may be appealing, these newer plans might simply be negligible for your particular data use case.
Are You Subscription-Trapped? Hopefully Not.
As AT&T and other players keep jacking up prices on old plans, consumers need to wise up about what this means long-term. Like we already hinted earlier, this all just seems to be about nudging people into pricier plans ever so often.
Instead of getting fleeced, consider alternatives like prepaid or MVNO plans that might actually save you some cash. Evaluate your usage, stay on top of the latest deals, and make informed choices about your service.
And don't let the carriers off easy. Demand clearer communication about changes and their impacts. Stay sharp, explore your options, and push for better practices from your providers.
Learn more about the price hike at AT&T's official support page.
