Holy frac...T-Mobile family plan for 4 lines down to $100/month

[jwang]

It's a sign that TMOBILE is getting hard time under lowered price point of AT&T plan.

That's why they throw out the deal. But it's a patch for now. It seems they want to wait and see how many new subscribers they can get under current plan with this new patch to tackle AT&T.

 

I don't expect Sprint to make patch like this. They should reprice the framily completely. If they do it, they should do it without needs to adjust in a year or two. The starting point of Framily plan for individual should go to $40 with 3 GB data. Then we should have options like addtional 2/5/7 GB data for $3/5/10. And unlimited data should be priced at $40 to justify the burden. The framily plan should allow user to choose share the data or strictly distribute the certain data for each user. This kind of price shall bring a lot of most-valuable subscribers to Sprint. I mean those people who use less than 2 GB a month and have stable income to buy nice phones and pay the bills. Most high-value customers will settle with the basic plan $40 plus monthly easy pay for their phones. Most of them will not even use 2 GB so that the 3 GB data is making them feel good and won't cost Sprint too much network capacity.

[jwang]

coverage is very varied by location. I can tell you that sprint does not come close to att levels of coverage in Miami. But they are talking about the equivalent for four lines on sprint not 7. You should only compare apples to apples, just got they compared 4 lines for att and big red. Sure the framily is cheaper when you have 7+ but that's not they are taking about. Also this isn't a shot at sprint but at att. They made the chart just for comparisons.

 

 

-Luis

 

 

I agree with you.

 

The 7 line thing for $25 per line is just a bad idea approved by the marketing company/marketing head got fired recently. Is the high-value consumer group going to save $20~40 a month by hassling their friends or relatvies?

 

If Sprint wants to grab those high-value customers, they don't need $25. They need an easy-to-get basic price like $40 with 3 GB data. So family plan of 3 or 4 will go down to $30 or 25 per line. Getting the $25 from framily of 4 lines. That's what they should do. It will help them to steal customers from individual plan and family less than 5.

 

Apparently Sprint knows the 7-line-for-$25 is not working well so they are testing the $50 for single line unlimited everything. But they still have not figured out they don't need the unlimited data to win the game. But well the idea to focus on unlimited data is also from the marketing guy who got fired. So I expect Sprint will focus on cheaper and higher data cap instead of unlimited data soon.

[WiWavelength]

I don't expect Sprint to make patch like this. They should reprice the framily completely. If they do it, they should do it without needs to adjust in a year or two. The starting point of Framily plan for individual should go to $40 with 3g data.

 

jwang, you need to go back and edit your posts.  You cannot, for example, refer to 3 GB as "3g data."  That is not an accepted convention, and far too many readers are going to misinterpret it.  So, please fix the missing "GB" notations.

 

AJ

[caspar347]

Seems to me that T-Mobile is activating all these new plans and programs knowing that they are going to be bought out. Sprint will be the bad guy when Sprint buys T-Mobile out and cancel a good bit of these uncarrier moves.

 

Sent from my Nexus 5

This is mostly what I'm afraid of. Somehow, current management will be made out to be the bad guys. Which IMHO is unfair. I know it doesn't matter at all in the grand scheme of things, but it pisses me off.

[jwang]

jwang, you need to go back and edit your posts.  You cannot, for example, refer to 3 GB as "3g data."  That is not an accepted convention, and far too many readers are going to misinterpret it.  So, please fix the missing "GB" notations.

 

AJ

 

Good point. Thanks. I just did.

[WiWavelength]

coverage is very varied by location. I can tell you that sprint does not come close to att levels of coverage in Miami.

 

No other operator can come close to AT&T in Miami.  AT&T has both Cellular 850 MHz licenses for 50 MHz of contiguous low band spectrum.  Plus, it got to cherry pick the best sites or retain all sites from AT&TWS' and BellSouth' two already mature Cellular 850 MHz networks.  Competing against that in Miami is just not a fair fight.

 

Going forward, Sprint has the second best spectrum position in Miami, since it has low band spectrum for both CDMA1X and LTE. VZW cannot match that, as it has low band spectrum for only LTE.  The same largely holds true for T-Mobile.  It has loads of mid to high band spectrum in Miami, but it will not have usable low band spectrum until sometime after the 600 MHz auction -- in other words, it will be a few years.  And even then, T-Mobile will never have low band spectrum for W-CDMA, only LTE.

 

AJ

[Nickel]

No other operator can come close to AT&T in Miami.  AT&T has both Cellular 850 MHz licenses for 50 MHz of contiguous low band spectrum.  Plus, it got to cherry pick the best sites or retain all sites from AT&TWS' and BellSouth' two already mature Cellular 850 MHz networks.  Competing against that in Miami is just not a fair fight.

Kinda sounds like VZW in Lincoln after the Alltel acquisition went through.

[EmeraldReporter]

@WiWavelength - If you could map out subscribers on an electoral/election style map, how would it look like in Florida and WA State? The U.S.A.?

Edited July 28, 2014 by EmeraldReporter

[WiWavelength]

Kinda sounds like VZW in Lincoln after the Alltel acquisition went through.

 

Some AT&T markets -- Miami, Dallas, San Antonio -- and some VZW markets -- Phoenix, Cleveland, Omaha -- are going to be in that position just about forever.  Barring a technological breakthrough, regulatory shakeup, or nuclear war, AT&T and VZW are going to hold dominant 50 MHz contiguous low band spectrum positions plus huge head starts in mature network deployment and subscriber acquisition in those dual license Cellular 850 MHz markets.  All other comers are just competing for second place.

 

AJ

[jwang]

Some AT&T markets -- Miami, Dallas, San Antonio -- and some VZW markets -- Phoenix, Cleveland, Omaha -- are going to be in that position just about forever.  Barring a technological breakthrough, regulatory shakeup, or nuclear war, AT&T and VZW are going to hold dominant 50 MHz contiguous low band spectrum positions plus huge head starts in mature network deployment and subscriber acquisition in those dual license Cellular 850 MHz markets.  All other comers are just competing for second place.

 

AJ

 

 

Is the 600mhz spectrum to change that? If S got 30~40mhz national wide to deploy.

[Nickel]

Some AT&T markets -- Miami, Dallas, San Antonio -- and some VZW markets -- Phoenix, Cleveland, Omaha -- are going to be in that position just about forever.  Barring a technological breakthrough, regulatory shakeup, or nuclear war, AT&T and VZW are going to hold dominant 50 MHz contiguous low band spectrum positions plus huge head starts in mature network deployment and subscriber acquisition in those dual license Cellular 850 MHz markets.  All other comers are just competing for second place.

 

AJ

The good news is that thanks to BRS/EBS Sprint can make a compelling case for second. 

[Nickel]

Is the 600mhz spectrum to change that? If S got 30~40mhz national wide to deploy.

The entire band probably won't be that big, much less Sprint getting all of it.

[Mondays In Flames]

No other operator can come close to AT&T in Miami. AT&T has both Cellular 850 MHz licenses for 50 MHz of contiguous low band spectrum. Plus, it got to cherry pick the best sites or retain all sites from AT&TWS' and BellSouth' two already mature Cellular 850 MHz networks. Competing against that in Miami is just not a fair fight.

 

Going forward, Sprint has the second best spectrum position in Miami, since it has low band spectrum for both CDMA1X and LTE. VZW cannot match that, as it has low band spectrum for only LTE. The same largely holds true for T-Mobile. It has loads of mid to high band spectrum in Miami, but it will not have usable low band spectrum until sometime after the 600 MHz auction -- in other words, it will be a few years. And even then, T-Mobile will never have low band spectrum for W-CDMA, only LTE.

 

AJ

What about the 700MHZ tmo acquired from big red?

 

 

-Luis

[WiWavelength]

What about the 700MHZ tmo acquired from big red?

 

That hardly covers every T-Mobile market.  And it is not usable in many major markets until UHF channel 51 is shut down, which will happen in conjunction with the 600 MHz auction.

 

AJ

[Mondays In Flames]

That hardly covers every T-Mobile market. And it is not usable in many major markets until UHF channel 51 is shut down, which will happen in conjunction with the 600 MHz auction.

 

AJ

Thanks for the info! That makes more sense. I keep reading contradictory information regarding 700MHZ deployment.

 

Also I do wanna point out to another poster regarding this being a patch. I semi agree? It seems like it came out of nowhere but I'm guessing not many people will complain unless they like the whole data bucket sharing thing. I've personally hated sharing data. I'm not a big consumer on average but my father is and I don't want to be penalized because of his fees. Which is strange to me that Sprint is charging overages since they offer unlimited data... Hmmm...

 

 

-Luis

[EmeraldReporter]

...but my father is (user of data) and I don't want to be penalized because of his fees. Which is strange to me that Sprint is charging overages since they offer unlimited data... Hmmm...

 

 

-Luis

Are you on Framily? If so, you need to upgrade his data allotment to Unlimited for $20 per month. Edited July 29, 2014 by EmeraldReporter

[Mondays In Flames]

Are you on Framily? If so, you need to upgrade his data allotment to Unlimited for $20 per month.

Nope. Not on Sprint anymore. I'm on TMO now. I was just making an observation on what seems like an unnecessary fee. If Sprint offer unlimited why would they charge overage fees instead of just bumping you up to the next data tier. Or just you know. not charge it. It doesn't make sense to me.

 

 

-Luis

[dnicekid]

Seems like sprint responded to atts bucket deals and this is tmos way of responding to sprint and att. 10g plan that drops to be slightly better than the framily plan. Tmo competing with both..

 

Then some will argue if sprint buys Tmo these type of things will disappear.

[EmeraldReporter]

Nope. Not on Sprint anymore. I'm on TMO now. I was just making an observation on what seems like an unnecessary fee. If Sprint offer unlimited why would they charge overage fees instead of just bumping you up to the next data tier. Or just you know. not charge it. It doesn't make sense to me.

 

 

-Luis

You have to change your data allotment proactively.

[darickster09]

You presume wrong. For $25 dollars @ 7+ Framily members, you get 1GB of data. Add $10 dollars you get 3GB's at $15 per GB in overages. $20 dollars Unlimited Data. Not throttling, no slowdowns. Well, unless you're a data hog on one particular cell tower, but once you leave that select tower, to another tower, you're speeds will go back to normal. The throttle doesn't follow you where ever you go.

Sprint, if a bit more expensive, offers you the whole enchilada. With comparable coverage to AT&T.

 

NOW I WANT AN ENCHILADA! LOL.

[Jones]

Where's my burrito!? Where's my burrito!? Where's my burrito!?

 

[Paynefanbro]

Analysts fear that this plan will cut T-Mobile's ARPU even further down. They also suspect that this might force Verizon to react to T-Mobile. http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/analysts-t-mobiles-family-plan-promo-could-cut-arpu-might-pressure-verizon/2014-07-29

[spotmeterf64]

That 10 gb is a limited time in Jan 2016 it goes to 1gb each. Thats the same as 4 lines on framily with max discount

 

That's the sneaky part. You still have 6 months to go on your phone payments and your data is slashed at the same price you're paying. Contracts may be expensive if you break them, but they keep everyone honest.

[WiWavelength]

That's the sneaky part. You still have 6 months to go on your phone payments and your data is slashed at the same price you're paying.

 

Ooh, that's how they getcha.

 

 

AJ

[SquirtleSquad]

Talked to a rep yesterday about a 5th line.  They said line 5 would be the same as normal now $10.  $110 for 12.5 GB is great, only problem is it's shared, but they got music freedom which is pretty nice if you are in an area where T-mobile works.   Still waiting for sprint to roll out LTE here, everyone else has it.  Was going to test drive sprint again but the whole up to 90 days for a refund in their terms is a big turn off.