Verizon Wireless and AT&T Inc. cut the price of calling plans with unlimited talk time as competition heats up between the two largest U.S. mobile-phone services.
Beginning Jan. 18, both companies will charge $69.99 a month for unlimited talk or $89.99 for a plan with unlimited calls and texts, the carriers said in separate statements today.
Verizon moved first to cut the prices earlier today, part of a plan to simplify pricing and encourage more customers to buy data plans that let smartphones access the Internet and download programs. The cheaper, unrestricted plans may persuade subscribers to upgrade, said Jennifer Fritzsche, an analyst at Wells Fargo Securities LLC in Chicago.
“We could see a move upwards rather than downwards,” said Fritzsche, who recommends buying shares of AT&T and Verizon Communications Inc. “Any kind of voice pricing is very much a commodity. Data is the future.”
Verizon’s unlimited voice plan for individuals was $99.99, with unlimited text and video messages costing $119.99, according to the carrier’s Web site. AT&T is cutting the price of its unlimited voice plans from $99.99 a month, according to the Dallas-based company’s Web site.
Sprint sells a package of unlimited calls, data and messaging for $99.99. While the company didn’t announce a price change today, it said customers who buy unlimited messaging and data plans will save almost $240 a year over Verizon’s new offering.
Reviewing Prices
“We’re always looking at our pricing and evaluating whether changes are needed,” said Emmy Anderson, a spokeswoman for Overland Park, Kansas-based Sprint. “The plans that we offer right now, we really feel are giving customers the best value in wireless.”
Verizon subscribers with phones capable of downloading video and other multimedia content will be required to sign up for a $9.99-per-month data plan.
Verizon Communications, which co-owns Basking Ridge, New Jersey-based Verizon Wireless, declined 64 cents to $30.58 today in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. AT&T dropped 40 cents to $25.79, while Sprint rose 13 cents to $3.82.
Verizon Communications had revenue of $15.8 billion from its 89 million mobile customers in the third quarter, a 24 percent increase from a year earlier. The wireless unit made up more than half of sales as land-line customers defected.
Much of the growth came from data plans, which customers use to access the Internet and download media. Customers’ average monthly bills fell 2.2 percent to $51.04, even as payments for data services rose 17 percent, Verizon said in its October report. The company will report fourth-quarter results on Jan. 26.
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