Comments on: It’s Time for Shared Data Plans in Households

By: Rajesh

Rajesh — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 15:02:31 +0000

+1 as well, it makes too much sense so it wont happen.

By: mask

mask — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 17:54:55 +0000

it gives lot of benefits to home users specially large family

By: Lindsworth Horatio Deer

Lindsworth Horatio Deer — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 04:31:41 +0000

Great idea! Not sure if the Telecom Providers would like the idea of making less money by offering group Data Plans. Competition is need to force them to do this!

By: Zatz

Zatz — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 23:26:48 +0000

My wife Melissa and I combined would fit on a 2GB/mo plan given our current usage. On one hand you’d think the carriers would make less money if they offered a family data plan. On the other hand, I have a Verizon iPhone and she has AT&T. Family data might give us a reason to consolidate on the same carrier, which would be a net win for one of the carriers.

By: BevL

BevL — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 20:12:06 +0000

I’ve got 5 lines on my ATT Family Plan- 4 kids and me (that means we’re maxed out so my husband is stuck with a TracFone). I do pay $30/mo for family unlimited texting and one of my sons added a $10/mo non-smartphone data plan (which he’s supposed to pay me for each month. Uh, yeah, he did… once). I’ve been waiting and hoping for a family data plan. ALL of us would like to have smartphones, but with the individual data plans, that SO ain’t happening- I’m currently paying about $170/mo (with taxes and fees). Paying for 5 individual data plans would be lunacy.

I’ve considered switching to T-Mobile or Sprint because of their data plans, but paying $35 per line (plus taxes) for activation plus the price of the new phones also seems like throwing good money after bad.

GAK! I REALLY feel like the cell phone companies artificially inflate the price of services. I mean, I’m all for someone making a profit, but it just seems like there’s no reason for all of it to be SO high priced.

By: Stuart

Stuart — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 19:55:13 +0000

Roger’s of Canada already has a datasharing plan. Perhaps AT&T and Verizon will do something like that. http://www.rogers.com/web/content/dataSharing

By: Kevin C. Tofel

Kevin C. Tofel — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 19:44:13 +0000

Stuart, AT&T’s $20 tethering fee adds another 2 GB of data for a total of 4 GB, so you’re not just paying for the privilege of having the ability. Just a small clarification.

By: Stuart

Stuart — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 19:00:48 +0000

I can’t see how shared data plans will be enacted in a way that really saves money. AT&T won’t let you share data you already pay for without an expensive monthly tethering plan. And you pay for that just for the privilege of having that ability. I can’t see the “sharing fee” being any less than the tethering fee. If fact, I can see it being more because you can use the 2 (or more) devices in separate locations while you use a sharing plan, but you can’t use a tethering plan that way.

Why not just have “rollover data” like they had rollover minutes? (They do in fact have “rollover data” but that is only for prepaid customers.) A better solution might be a fair price for metered data but that is not in their interests.

By: Joe Romeo

Joe Romeo — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 18:35:49 +0000

I have a feeling Mr. de la Vega was just pandering. If anything their love of tiered data plans means a “Family style” data plan would be priced outrageously if it happens at all.

By: varun

varun — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 17:18:53 +0000

+1.

And because it means less profit for AT&T, you can be damn sure this is not just going to take a while, it’s never going to happen. But it sure looks nice when you’re the CEO of a company that’s trying to destroy the last semblance of competition in the market.

AT&T: more money for less service.