AT&T CEO's "Only Regret" is Offering Unlimited Data Packages

[McLagman]

No one is forced to either buy an iPhone in the first place or use it with AT&T.

I bought an unlocked iPhone from Apple directly without a contract (I travel internationally a lot) and I use it with T-Mobile here in the USA. I paid full price for my own phone and have no contract... imagine that.

If you just want cheap calls and text messages, you can get a Trac Fone from Wal Mart for $9 that will do what you want, so don't act like there isn't an alternative or price competition.

If you like having AT&T subsidize your phone so you can get it cheap and also provide you with nationwide fast mobile internet, then quit whining over a few bucks. Take a step back and look at the technology, both in the phone and the amazing connectivity anywhere you go... it's an amazing deal.

If you don't like AT&T, then don't sign a contract with them or leave them and find someone else you do like. It's your choice.

 

[littyboy]

Finally some good news from MR.

 

[Makos62]

With other plans adopting the unlimited, except for AT&T and Verizon, it seems that the greed of AT&T is just more evident by the comment. It is not like it it truly unlimited anymore, with their throttling anyone who exceeds an ever decreasing amount of data.

 

[vartanarsen]

All that changed with the iPhone, however. Apple negotiated for full control over the platform.

Thats why even though Personal Hotspot is a pure iOS feature, ATT charges it as a service? And Apple cant do anything about it?

This feature alone made me jb to get tetherme. Is my data...they have no business controlling to what device i can ether my paid data to...

 

[Quad 2.5 G5 =)]

That is an illegal business practice in the USA ever since the break up of Ma Bell in 1984. A single company may provide equipment or content/network services but not both. This prevents a proprietary network from having exclusive content control over their network. This is also why you will never see Orange in the USA.

Simple solution. Buy T-Mobile and run it as a subsidiary. Offer discounted plans over all the other carriers...as well as unlocking any iPhones upon request, as long as you buy a contract with T-Mobile.

 

[erio]

Sprint CEO cuts his pay for iPhone, while this @$$#0L3 bitches about iMessages?
I guess I know who has their priorities straight.

 

[nikron]

My subscription plan here in Sweden: $70 for unlimited data, messages and calls. What era are you living in over there?

 

[iztech]

Greedy

These guys made tons of money with Long Distance Calls. Now they make even more by getting $60-100 from each person in the home, plus internet, plus VOIP, plus TV.

 

[Tinmania]

My subscription plan here in Sweden: $70 for unlimited data, messages and calls. What era are you living in over there?

So what? I have an out of contract iPhone 4 on T-Mobile for $50 per month (everything included). I could get it for $40 from another provider if I wanted to.

So maybe I should ask you, what era are you living in "over there?"




Michael

 

[Macboy Pro]

This SOB is whining, but the fact is that AT&T robs all of their iPhone costumers. $20 per 100kB overseas data? $30 for 5GB? My bill is almost $150 a month for horrible service. Here in the States we overpay big time and what do we get? Spotty and mediocre service. And this @sshole has the audacity to complain about the cost of doing business? I won't shed a tear when these telecom companies go down the pooper.

----------



Apple should have bought T-Mobile and turned it into a data only service and let the people choose their preferred VOIP service for voice.

#1 AT&T has to pay the overseas carriers, so complain to them or use your Sprint/Verizon iPhone overseas

#2 When the telecom companies go down, so does your service. Good Luck with that.

#3 Apple is not a telecom company so that marriage would probably be devastating to Apple and they know it.

#4 IF Apple was to successfully open a telecomm business, are you kidding? You want to pay Apple Pricing for your data plan. OMG, You will be begging for AT&T.

 

[McGiord]

Wow look at all the classy people flaming this guy. He was being honest AND he is correct. Clearly he understands business which is why AT&T is extremely successful.

oh, and I love hearing the folks who are switching to Sprint because they are being throttled LOL You are going to Sprint so you can be throttled ALL THE TIME?

This forum is full of brilliant folks...

What is the thing that he is correct about?

In the other hand, many people pay for their data plan and not even use 50% of their data cap. So, are they really loosing money? No way.
Rollover data plan is what they should offer.

So far no disruptive service yet.

A real disruptive service will be a simple bill $100 per month unlimited voice and wireless data plan for home, around the city and a la carte on demand TV programming.

 

[AllieNeko]

Wireless CEO's pull this kinda crap. Verizon Wireless's CEO and Sprint's CEO have done similar things. It was years ago but the CEO of Verizon Wireless once went on a rant about how unreasonable customers were demanding things like expecting their phones to work in their homes (seriously, he said that, in his tirade against unreasonable customer demands. I dang well expect my phone to work at home and I don't apologize for it). This was back before most people had gone cell-only. Maybe around 2005 when people were just starting to. I was a college student and proudly cell-only and unfortunately, a Verizon subscriber (only national carrier choice in Montana at the time - Western Wireless had terrible customer service and their staff were rude as heck, and Blackfoot was just... bad). I switched to Alltel once they came to town, and I'm now on AT&T when they took over Alltel.

With regards to the quality of the service, I really couldn't be happier. AT&T has poured so much money into their network in Montana, and I get great service almost everywhere I travel. All the AT&T horror stories I just don't see. When they first launched in Montana, with only a single UMTS channel, I had network problems, yes. But they were super-apologetic and gave me WITHOUT ASKING ANYTHING EXCEPT STATUS UPDATES what totaled hundreds of dollars in bill credits over the approximately 8 months from when they launched until they had everything fixed (though it was MUCH better within 4 months). Anyone who was on Alltel got offered excellent upgrade deals (I'd JUST upgraded to an iPhone 4 in July, and was allowed to upgrade to the 4S at the new contract price PLUS I got a $50 bill credit as a thank you for upgrading early!). I also got 6 months free family texting (a $180 value). A $60 credit for some harassing calls (to offset the cost of parental controls for a year, though I only kept them on for two months). Yeah, I'd say AT&T has treated me very well. Alltel was pretty darn good too, recently.

Sure, the CEO said some crap. They all do, it makes them look good to delusional shareholders. AT&T is expensive. But you get what you pay for. And honestly, they're cheaper than Verizon and I get *far* better coverage and speeds. I've recently started imitating Verizon's "speed challenge" ads - pitting my iPhone 4S in a SpeedTest.net test against random friend and associate's Verizon phones. Many have seen their 4G challenge ads. They're usually SHOCKED when they discover the reality. My AT&T phone makes their Verizon phones look pathetic - ten times the speed is fairly typical, and twenty to thirty times faster is not at all uncommon (I get 1.5-7mbps down, they usually get 0.1-0.5mbps down).

 

[3282868]

So what? I have an out of contract iPhone 4 on T-Mobile for $50 per month (everything included). I could get it for $40 from another provider if I wanted to.

So maybe I should ask you, what era are you living in "over there?"




Michael

Oh, chill out! Chill. Out.

 

[TheAppleGeek]

What the hell.

 

[MrXiro]

My subscription plan here in Sweden: $70 for unlimited data, messages and calls. What era are you living in over there?

We have that... it's called Sprint. But their network is a bit slow for the iPhone, should be great with their LTE phones though! Well I think it's $80 after the 10 dollar smartphone tax and $92 after normal taxes and Sprint's "convenient" charge

 

[McGiord]

I can't imagine that many people lowered their texting plan because they have iMessage. Why?

1) If you're on a family plan, texting is so cheap as a whole. (If you're not on a family plan, get together with some friends and get on one!)
2) You can't dump texting for all the people who don't have iPhones.
3) iMessage is taking the texting load off of AT&T, so it's a benefit to AT&T. Sort of kidding on this one, since I'd assume the texting load is kind of low. But if I've got unlimited texting, now I'm using AT&T texting less when I text to my iPhone friends (especially when on WiFi).
4) Most customers probably don't even realize iMessage now uses less texts from your texting plan.

My 2 cents...

Gary

There is an app for that: Whatsapp.
Or you can send an email instead of a text to one of those dumb phones.

 

[MrXiro]

Wireless CEO's pull this kinda crap. Verizon Wireless's CEO and Sprint's CEO have done similar things. It was years ago but the CEO of Verizon Wireless once went on a rant about how unreasonable customers were demanding things like expecting their phones to work in their homes (seriously, he said that, in his tirade against unreasonable customer demands. I dang well expect my phone to work at home and I don't apologize for it). This was back before most people had gone cell-only. Maybe around 2005 when people were just starting to. I was a college student and proudly cell-only and unfortunately, a Verizon subscriber (only national carrier choice in Montana at the time - Western Wireless had terrible customer service and their staff were rude as heck, and Blackfoot was just... bad). I switched to Alltel once they came to town, and I'm now on AT&T when they took over Alltel.

With regards to the quality of the service, I really couldn't be happier. AT&T has poured so much money into their network in Montana, and I get great service almost everywhere I travel. All the AT&T horror stories I just don't see. When they first launched in Montana, with only a single UMTS channel, I had network problems, yes. But they were super-apologetic and gave me WITHOUT ASKING ANYTHING EXCEPT STATUS UPDATES what totaled hundreds of dollars in bill credits over the approximately 8 months from when they launched until they had everything fixed (though it was MUCH better within 4 months). Anyone who was on Alltel got offered excellent upgrade deals (I'd JUST upgraded to an iPhone 4 in July, and was allowed to upgrade to the 4S at the new contract price PLUS I got a $50 bill credit as a thank you for upgrading early!). I also got 6 months free family texting (a $180 value). A $60 credit for some harassing calls (to offset the cost of parental controls for a year, though I only kept them on for two months). Yeah, I'd say AT&T has treated me very well. Alltel was pretty darn good too, recently.

Sure, the CEO said some crap. They all do, it makes them look good to delusional shareholders. AT&T is expensive. But you get what you pay for. And honestly, they're cheaper than Verizon and I get *far* better coverage and speeds. I've recently started imitating Verizon's "speed challenge" ads - pitting my iPhone 4S in a SpeedTest.net test against random friend and associate's Verizon phones. Many have seen their 4G challenge ads. They're usually SHOCKED when they discover the reality. My AT&T phone makes their Verizon phones look pathetic - ten times the speed is fairly typical, and twenty to thirty times faster is not at all uncommon (I get 1.5-7mbps down, they usually get 0.1-0.5mbps down).

My Verizon iPad pulled 21 MBPS down in LA. If it wasn't for the fact that I don't like Verizon's pricing plans for phones I'd jump to them in a heart beat.

 

[shinobi-81]

I have seen many comparisons with Apple here. I would say that Apple and AT&T are poles apart, since Apple spends far more money on innovation than what they ever spent on dividend to the stockholders. In either case one can talk about corporate greed, but at least Apple is striving to create something of value, as opposed to the executives of AT&T who won't even give their customers decent data speed.

I do not hate AT&T, and I have never had anything to do with them, but I can understand why many customers are frustrated.

 

[beez1717]

He should have said "My only regret is not ?!#@ing my customers by nickle and diming them for every bit and byte they use on our network right away; I regret being a nice CEO!"

 

[AllieNeko]

My Verizon iPad pulled 21 MBPS down in LA. If it wasn't for the fact that I don't like Verizon's pricing plans for phones I'd jump to them in a heart beat.

In LA, sure, of course! I didn't say it was the same everywhere. I just said that in my area, AT&T knocks the socks off Verizon. HSPA+ vs EVDO.

Also, remember, if you have an iPhone you wouldn't see 21mbps on Verizon. 0.1-0.5mbps (unless you're in an area with much better EVDO than here, up to 2mbps is theoretically possible), because it's going to be EVDO, not LTE.

 

[GQB]

A popular but totally incorrect analogy.
...

A text is not a data connection. It is a very short phone call and thus is billed that way, usually starting at 10 cents a minute minimum... or less if you've made a deal.

in other words they're using an obsolete technology that deserves to die.

 

[damant]

He's gonna change his tune real fast once Sprint got LTE fully implemented along with unlimited plan ;-)

 

[Sedulous]

in other words they're using an obsolete technology that deserves to die.

Aren't all comms from a phone digital data anyway?

 

[bbmiLo]

So what? I have an out of contract iPhone 4 on T-Mobile for $50 per month (everything included). I could get it for $40 from another provider if I wanted to.

So maybe I should ask you, what era are you living in "over there?"


Michael

I live in Shanghai mostly, and I pay 66 CNY (~10.50 USD) per month, for 60 mins, 250 texts, and 2GB of data. Btw in China all incoming calls/texts are free.

I don't know how many mins of phone call you guys usually make on the unlimited plan.
For me, in China people heavily favor texts over voice calls, with text apps like whatsapp and weixin, I have more than what I need.

I think wireless carrier package deal in USA is a joke.

 

[ZacNicholson]

Thats not his only regret now. he's going to regret he said this.