Verizon Raises 4G Rates

Verizon will begin to end its unlimited data plan for existing subscribers. As customers upgrade to super fast 4G LTE service, Verizon will use the opportunity to take away something many consumers thought was routine pricing. 4G networks carry larger amounts of data than 3G ones. Verizon will make the case that the expense of customers who use these networks is high.

Verizon has a strong enough lock on the American market to hold most customers to such a plan. So does AT&T (NYSE: T). Sprint (NYSE: S) and T-Mobile are in another class. They cannot alienate their smaller pools of customers, and need to try to take subscribers from their larger rivals. Their one point of leverage could be to keep 4G unlimited plans and promote them as superior for heavy users of data on 4G networks.

Douglas A. McIntyre