Verizon is Raising Prices on Grandfathered Unlimited Plans by $20

[94lt1]

Ok kids...don't make me turn this car around!!! Let's play nice or take your toys and go home...

 

[liftedplane]

Your argument is way off.

Do you tether? Or do you think that the majority of the people here with UDP tether?

I think that most do. And that right there is a difference.

If you were on a 20GB plan, I would say you were right. You are paying for 20GB, and you should be able to consume that 20GB any way you like... with your phone, or your iPad or laptop through tethering... And you know what? VZW agrees with that.

However, when you are on UDP, there are guidelines and stipulations in the contract. One of them is that you cannot tether unless you pay for it. Which I am pretty sure that you, along with most of the UDP folks here, don't. It's like going to a restaurant and you buying a nice ribeye... You can eat it any way you want, or share it with your wife or friend, etc... Nobody cares because you bought a ribeye and the ribeye was consumed.

However, when it is all you can eat, there tend to be stipulations. You cannot have 5 of you show up, pay for one ticket, and all of you sit there and eat unlimited for the price of one person.

And if they let you because you have some loophole or an app that lets you get around their policy(the terms of service) that lets you sneak food to the others, and they finally decide to crack down on it and either kick you out, or charge you for the others, then you really have no right to whine about it. I mean, it's a free country, you can whine about anything you want, but you aren't being intellectually honest when you do it.

Listen to the obvious point I am making and the spirit of their TOS, rather than just picking apart my words and looking for some bit of semantics to exploit in an effort to win an internet debate... So don't waste our time with trying to argue how the all you can eat buffet analogy is wrong because in your case you are the one doing all the eating... Don't. It holds up because the reality is that like bringing friends to the buffet, when you are consuming on your phone, you typically won't consume as much as when you are also using your laptop, your iPad, maybe the wife or kid's tablet, etc... The law of averages says that with more devices consuming data, more data is likely to be consumed. Just because *you* might not, is irrelevant. This isn't about YOU. VZW is not enacting pricing or policy changes for YOU. We both know that on average, people on UDP and tethering are doing so to soak up a lot of data in violation of the TOS. If they weren't, then they wouldn't care much about UDP and just be on a tiered plan, in most cases...

They sold UDP many years ago when the average cell phone might consume a couple GB a month. And we both know that a lot of people here abused that with tethering hacks. Hell, every time a new OTA is announced, the first question typically asked is if it is rooted and if FoxFi or other tethering apps work, and we both know it. And the reason is people that are in UPD and tethering in violation of VZW's TOS, want to continue to abuse the system. If they were not on UDP and "illegally" tethering, it wouldn't be an issue because VZW lets tiered plans tether all day long no problem...

I don't see a problem with them increasing the price on UDP. I pay more for my cell phone bill than I did several years ago, so why shouldn't you?

again what proof do you have that most of is still on UDP are abusing the system? Verizon is anything but a victim, they don't need a knight in shining armour to come to their rescue.

so what you're saying is because I do not pay for a fixed amount of data (I pay for unlimited, which by it's very nature means as much as I can use) I have zero right to complain?

I don't tether... I did last month because there was an issue with the internet in my area... between gaming netflix and my phone I used under 20gb... I've burned through more than that simply updating apps and installing games on my phone ONLY my phone WITHOUT tethering. the idea that just because I'm on a tablet means I consume more is ridiculous, I consume THE EXACT SAME AMOUNT!!!! I'm not sitting on both my tablet and phone watching netflix on my note while I've got youtube on my nexus.... it's just not like that... I get on facebook on my tablet or my phone... it's the same damn app... I watch netflix on my phone or tablet... it's the same app... I get on youtube, play music, website I visit on my tablet POINT ME TO THE MOBILE VERSION!!! it's literally identical to my phone. now if I'm sharing my tether with my family, yeah that's not the same.. that's not cool... otherwise your argument holds no water.

if I go to a buffet and pay for all I can eat and grab 3 plates at a time... that's allowed... they don't limit the amount of plates because it's unlimited. You're just assuming those of us with unlimited data are sharing out tethering with the world, walking around handing out the password asking people to download as many files as they can... I guess I better get my network bridge working, I'm going to go setup a hotspot in the local mall, maybe I'll charge people $5 per day to use my unlimited data, I'll link the bridge to my tether so I can have more than 5 people... bet I can hit a couple of terabytes, then Verizon would really have a reason to be upset.

you see. I don't share my connection, I don't use my phone as an ISP, in-fact I'm on my desktop on xfinity right now, I could be doing this from my phone, but long drawn-out replies like this cramp my thumb, just because I have unlimited doesn't mean I abuse it, IT ALSO doesn't mean I should be penalized or forced onto another type of data just because. I DO NOT Want to have to EVER worry about going over, if I use 1gb or 20gb it doesn't matter.

you know, I've honestly forgotten why I'm even writing this. it doesn't matter, you assume (incorrectly I might add) that EVERY SINGLE PERSON ON UNLIMITED DATA IS A SHIESTY THIEF DIRT BAG WHO IS STEAL DATA BY THE TERABYTE FROM VERIZON EVERY SINGLE MONTH AND USING THEIR PHONE AS A HOME INTERNET CONNECTION when that's simply not true.

and until you have irrefutable evidence to backup your claim that every one of us is a data stealing rat, I honestly can't take you seriously.

 

[94lt1]

You make an interesting statement in your post^^^^^ some of these apps now days burn through a bunch of data in updates...Facebook is always having sizeable updates. If I wasn't unlimited ..I would decline most of them...simply because you don't know what they'll break....

My point being..if I were on a limited plan..I wouldn't want to be wasting 1/3 of a gig...4 times a month to keep Facebook up to date .its insane..

 

[liftedplane]

You make an interesting statement in your post^^^^^ some of these apps now days burn through a bunch of data in updates...Facebook is always having sizeable updates. If I wasn't unlimited ..I would decline most of them...simply because you don't know what they'll break....

My point being..if I were on a limited plan..I wouldn't want to be wasting 1/3 of a gig...4 times a month to keep Facebook up to date .its insane..

that's part of it too... I shouldn't have to use wifi to update my mobile phone... it's mobile for a reason. Yet most of my friends have all of their apps ready for update and just never get around to it because they forget to do it at home and don't want to burn through their data.

the NFL mobile is a perfect example, you pay to use the app, then you pay for the data the app consumes, and then they get upset when you use too much data... data they want you to consume.

 

[SquireSCA]

again what proof do you have that most of is still on UDP are abusing the system? Verizon is anything but a victim, they don't need a knight in shining armour to come to their rescue.

so what you're saying is because I do not pay for a fixed amount of data (I pay for unlimited, which by it's very nature means as much as I can use) I have zero right to complain?

I don't tether... I did last month because there was an issue with the internet in my area... between gaming netflix and my phone I used under 20gb... I've burned through more than that simply updating apps and installing games on my phone ONLY my phone WITHOUT tethering. the idea that just because I'm on a tablet means I consume more is ridiculous, I consume THE EXACT SAME AMOUNT!!!! I'm not sitting on both my tablet and phone watching netflix on my note while I've got youtube on my nexus.... it's just not like that... I get on facebook on my tablet or my phone... it's the same damn app... I watch netflix on my phone or tablet... it's the same app... I get on youtube, play music, website I visit on my tablet POINT ME TO THE MOBILE VERSION!!! it's literally identical to my phone. now if I'm sharing my tether with my family, yeah that's not the same.. that's not cool... otherwise your argument holds no water.

if I go to a buffet and pay for all I can eat and grab 3 plates at a time... that's allowed... they don't limit the amount of plates because it's unlimited. You're just assuming those of us with unlimited data are sharing out tethering with the world, walking around handing out the password asking people to download as many files as they can... I guess I better get my network bridge working, I'm going to go setup a hotspot in the local mall, maybe I'll charge people $5 per day to use my unlimited data, I'll link the bridge to my tether so I can have more than 5 people... bet I can hit a couple of terabytes, then Verizon would really have a reason to be upset.

you see. I don't share my connection, I don't use my phone as an ISP, in-fact I'm on my desktop on xfinity right now, I could be doing this from my phone, but long drawn-out replies like this cramp my thumb, just because I have unlimited doesn't mean I abuse it, IT ALSO doesn't mean I should be penalized or forced onto another type of data just because. I DO NOT Want to have to EVER worry about going over, if I use 1gb or 20gb it doesn't matter.

you know, I've honestly forgotten why I'm even writing this. it doesn't matter, you assume (incorrectly I might add) that EVERY SINGLE PERSON ON UNLIMITED DATA IS A SHIESTY THIEF DIRT BAG WHO IS STEAL DATA BY THE TERABYTE FROM VERIZON EVERY SINGLE MONTH AND USING THEIR PHONE AS A HOME INTERNET CONNECTION when that's simply not true.

and until you have irrefutable evidence to backup your claim that every one of us is a data stealing rat, I honestly can't take you seriously.

I never said every one of you. The reality is that it doesn't matter how much you tether or don't tether, or how much data you use when you tether. If you are on UDP, then per the Terms of Service, you are not entitled to *ANY* tethering, at all.

That you find ways to circumvent the rules and cheat the system, is irrelevant.

When I see every OTA thread, and 15 people ask, "Does root and Wifi Tether work", they are clearly only asking it for one reason. If they were on tiered plans, they wouldn't ask because any phone is allowed to tether on those plans. They ask because they are on UDP, and they want to ensure that they can keep cheating the system and get extra data for multiple devices while only paying on one UDP plan with 2008 pricing...

That is not in VZW's best interests. They have a RIGHT to kick you off for violating the TOS, or charging you more. Which is what they have done.

I haven't said everyone is a thief, although in a strictly legal sense, if you agreed to a UDP plan with no tethering, and you tether anyway, then you are in fact stealing.

If the shoe fits...

 

[PereDroid]

My wife has UD and does not tether. Uses about 6GB/month just from Spotify and her apps. I wouldn't guess a majority are using tons of data. As is most cases, I'd guess a MINORITY. As usual, a few people ruin it for everyone.

 

[SquireSCA]

Here is my last comment on this and then I gotta run to Bass Pro...

I used to be on the other side of the argument, making the same claims some of you are. Go back and look at my posts from 3 or 4 years ago.

I argued that if I am only using 5GB on an Unlimited plan, who cares if that 5GB is from the phone or the phone and tethering? I mean 5GB is 5GB, data is data, and my tethering was not causing me to use an abusive amount of data, right? So what's the difference?

My word was the difference.

We all signed a contract. VZW was very clear in stating, in writing, here is what we will provide to you, and here are the terms and conditions for it. If you break the rules, we can disconnect you or move you to another plan. This is what this plan with these conditions costs, do you accept?

And I signed on the dotted line. I knowingly entered into a contract, and if I didn't like the terms, I was free to not sign it. But I did, and so I had no right to sit there bitching about the rules that I AGREED TO.

So it doesn't matter "how much" you tether. If you tether on UDP *at all*, you are in violation of the contract that YOU SIGNED. You are not entitled to it, just because you have managed to get away with it for years, or just because you "only steal occasionally or in an emergency".... You are still violating the rules that you put your signature on.

Case closed. Whining about a price increase or getting booted off, when you admit that you broke the TOS, is a child's argument. You might have done it once, others do it daily, and you all know that when you do it, you are breaking the rules.

If you get caught or are asked to pay more, too bad. That's life. Man up and pay your bill or deliver on your promise and go to another carrier who will make the same demands of you anyway...

Peace out...

 

[tattooguy21]

I'm averaging 50 gigs a month with literally no tethering whatsoever. I just use me a bunch of data. I'm ok with the $20 upcharge. It gives me the new goal to hit 100gb.

So tell me, should I be expected to pay more? I'm not rooted, no tether, no data share. Just me and my sports or npr streaming with the gps going for around 9 hours a day 3 days a week.

Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk

 

[sampson.dk]

Ok, so in the end, VZW offers you services that the others cannot, right?

And lets be clear, you don't need a cell phone. People have lived for thousands of years without them. Would it be inconvenient? Sure, but lets not make this about need...

Cell phones are almost essential these days. Have you looked for a pay phone lately?

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[lloydstrans]

Okay time to add my dos pesos. I don't tether, period. Yes I tried foxfi, never got it to work back in the day. Never needed it.

Back on topic, I never once cried when Verizon offered me more and more "freebies" when they were dishing them out. 400 to 600 minutes, 200 texts to 1000 texts etc. Can't recall what my original data cap was at. Eventually I'm sitting at truly unlimited everything. So do I feel compelled to cry because they now want a tad more? Not really. The only thing that irks me is that I'm still paying the subsidy for phones I have been buying out right for years.

Still no tears here.

We must...We must...increase our boost

 

[liftedplane]

Here is my last comment on this and then I gotta run to Bass Pro...

I used to be on the other side of the argument, making the same claims some of you are. Go back and look at my posts from 3 or 4 years ago.

I argued that if I am only using 5GB on an Unlimited plan, who cares if that 5GB is from the phone or the phone and tethering? I mean 5GB is 5GB, data is data, and my tethering was not causing me to use an abusive amount of data, right? So what's the difference?

My word was the difference.

We all signed a contract. VZW was very clear in stating, in writing, here is what we will provide to you, and here are the terms and conditions for it. If you break the rules, we can disconnect you or move you to another plan. This is what this plan with these conditions costs, do you accept?

And I signed on the dotted line. I knowingly entered into a contract, and if I didn't like the terms, I was free to not sign it. But I did, and so I had no right to sit there bitching about the rules that I AGREED TO.

So it doesn't matter "how much" you tether. If you tether on UDP *at all*, you are in violation of the contract that YOU SIGNED. You are not entitled to it, just because you have managed to get away with it for years, or just because you "only steal occasionally or in an emergency".... You are still violating the rules that you put your signature on.

Case closed. Whining about a price increase or getting booted off, when you admit that you broke the TOS, is a child's argument. You might have done it once, others do it daily, and you all know that when you do it, you are breaking the rules.

If you get caught or are asked to pay more, too bad. That's life. Man up and pay your bill or deliver on your promise and go to another carrier who will make the same demands of you anyway...

Peace out...

I actually paid for tethering at one point, problem was I didn't use it much... so I stopped paying... then when I went to get it again, they had discontinued. I'd happily pay $20 extra for the ability to tether, but they don't offer it. I have tethering enabled and can use it if I have to... I don't have to... I used about 15-20 a month without tethering. maybe I'm in the minority, I enjoy having the option, but do not use it.

oh and the plan pricing is NOT from 2008 as I've stated before it's from 2012 or more like 2011 when I joined this site and got my first droid.

 

[Xander Crews]

So I am on Nationwide Talkshare 700 w/2 lines. One line is unlimited data and the other has a 2gb cap. My line is the unlimited data line, and I am not under contract on that line, but my wife, who has the other line, is about halfway through a 2-yr contract.

How in the hell would this effect us? Would my line go up $20? If so, that seems unfair, because if we wanted to leave before the price increase, we couldn't unless we paid the penalty for ending a contract early...plus the subsidized phone that was on her line is now on my line...not that that makes any difference I guess.

I'm not hugely upset with the idea of the price increase because Verizon is by far the best provider in our area and has been rock solid for us since we signed on in 2009. We want the best and are willing to pay more for it. But what I don't like is having the price raised on one line when another line is still under contract and not being able to leave if we wanted without a penalty. That's kind of extortion. We're being asked to pay more money than we already are, and if we decline and request to leave, then we'll be forced to pay even more money.

Unless, I guess...I could just leave the plan and my wife would stay on it, but then the plan would change and switch her to a tiered plan, but how would that work because she is under contract still on the other plan?

Anyone know how that would effect a plan like ours?

 

[PereDroid]

I'm going to guess, pure guess, your increase won't happen until her contract expires since it is tied to your line.

Tap'n Turbo

 

[Ohyea!]

Well on the plus side I can upgrade my phone through Verizon without losing my unlimited now.
For me this just nullifies my work discount. Give or take a few dollars.

 

[SquireSCA]

I'm averaging 50 gigs a month with literally no tethering whatsoever. I just use me a bunch of data. I'm ok with the $20 upcharge. It gives me the new goal to hit 100gb.

So tell me, should I be expected to pay more? I'm not rooted, no tether, no data share. Just me and my sports or npr streaming with the gps going for around 9 hours a day 3 days a week.

Sent from my GT-N5110 using Tapatalk

Yes, you should pay more if they decide to increase prices. If you are UNDER contract, then your current pricing should stay till you re-up. But if you are out of contract, and the 2011 prices expire and there is a new price for UDP and you want to keep it, then yes, you should pay it.