This past weekend, we noticed that Helio had once again put its unlimited plan on sale, down to $99 from $145, so we called the company and managed to convince them to change our existing, personal Helio account to an unlimited all-in plan. It made sense, since we were easily spending over our minutes allotment on a plan that already cost $85. Of course, Helio always offered us unlimited messaging and data, along with a host of other services for which the major carriers charge, but the unlimited calling plan would finally put an end to overages on minutes, at a price that was less than we usually ended up paying.
Everyone jumps in the pool
No surprise, then, that in the last week all four major carriers have touted similar plans, each offering unlimited voice minutes and some combination of messaging and data along side. The most expensive plan, on Sprint, was already around, but it costs $200. At the low end, T-Mobile will give you voice and text messaging to your heart's content for $99, but no data is included at that price, though T-Mobile users have a less-desirable choice for data service anyway, considering the slower network and lack of multimedia services.
So, for about $150, you can fill up on data, voice and minutes on any major carrier, but do you want to? If your bill tops $150/month, the answer is easy. But the price is still a bit high. Even for folks who aren't also paying for a landline, for whom their cell phone is their only phone, it's tough to commit to such a high monthly payment for such a seemingly small device, especially if the device isn't really enticing customers to use their data allowance.
If you build it, they will pay
In other words, this recent flurry of unlimited plan announcements may seem like a price war, but in fact it’s a cold war with an eye on what's to come. One of the biggest questions surrounding ubiquitous networking and Sprint's WiMAX network plans has been about pricing models. Will people accept the sort of "All-In" plans that will encompass their voice and data devices together under one umbrella? Data plans in the U.S. are cheaper than just about anywhere in the world, but our devices are among the least compelling for data use. What happens when the devices catch up?
If these unlimited plans are a price war tactic, we'll see some price drops in the weeks to come, especially on the voice-only plans. Those will catch the budget folks who are worried about their monthly tab. The real audience for these plans, though, are the armies of new smartphone users who are looking for unlimited messaging and data for IM and Web surfing with their phones. As these phones get more compelling and draw in more users, unlimited plans will become more popular. And as the first BlackBerry Pearl and Palm Centro owners start looking for something more, we'll start seeing the first 4G devices and mobile internet devices (MIDs) to meet their demand.
When the battle ends
In the near term, we see these all-in plans coming down to $99 across the board. It's a good price point for single-users who rely on their mobile phones. Then, as the market expands, we'll see these higher prices return. The $150 price point is too high for most cell phone users, but when your laptop, your mobile phone and even your set-top box are all hopping onto your WiMAX or LTE account, it will seem more reasonable when you bundle them all together.
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