For years, T-Mobile has rewarded consumer loyalty by allowing its long-time subscribers to keep their phone plans when the company introduces newer, more-expensive tiers of service.
But that goodwill gesture is about to go away.
On Monday, T-Mobile confirmed reports published over the weekend that claimed the nation’s third-largest wireless provider will soon force many of its long-time customers onto more-expensive plans.
The move affects subscribers on plans that are, in some cases, 15 years old. Plans that are going away include those previously offered under the “T-Mobile One” and “Magenta” branding.
Over the next few weeks, customers will be automatically moved to newer T-Mobile plans called “Experience,” a spokesperson affirmed. One of the things some customers will experience is a higher monthly bill, with phone lines increasing by as much as $6 per month and tablet lines going up by $3 per month each.
Customers on legacy T-Mobile One plans will also lose the KickBack promotion, which provided a $10 monthly credit for each line that used less than 2 GB of data. Depending on the number of lines receiving the discount, the elimination of that benefit could substantially increase monthly bills beyond the new plan pricing.
T-Mobile said the plans were initially introduced in the era of its 3G and 4G LTE networks, but have not kept up with the times as the company leverages more of the benefits of its national 5G network.
“Customers will transition to modern plans that provide access to America’s best wireless technology, enhanced features and a five-year price guarantee for peace of mind.” a T-Mobile spokesperson said.
One of the biggest losses that many long-time customers will face is price assurance: Magenta and T-Mobile One plans were among the first offerings in the industry to include taxes, government surcharges and monthly fees into a flat rate for service. If a plan was advertised as $70 per month for a single line, customers paid just that — $70.
None of T-Mobile’s post-paid plans have taxes and fees included, allowing the company to collect the entire advertised price while putting the customers on the hook for taxes, government surcharges and fees, which increases the price a subscriber pays for service beyond what they might expect.
Beyond the obvious revenue boost, T-Mobile believes eliminating older plans will also simplify the customer experience when it comes to support. T-Mobile’s billing system will retire more than 1,000 internal codes used to assist in charging and refunding customers, including nearly all of the company’s legacy plans offered via Sprint before the two providers merged.
Customers aggrieved by the changes have a number of options to consider, including low-cost phone service offered by cable companies like Comcast and Charter, which lease space on Verizon’s network. Verizon also has its own low-cost carrier called Visible, which charges $25 per month for unlimited service on its 4G LTE and 5G networks.
