AT&T unlimited data plan subscribers will have to pay an extra $5 beginning in February 2016.
This means that customers who are still under a grandfathered unlimited data plan of $30 will have to pay $35 a month because of the price hike. Compared to the offers from other carriers, however, AT&T's move is still considered as modest.
The increase will be the carrier's first price hike in seven years. Apart from the higher prices, customers are getting the same deal. They still have to pay for talk and text costs separately from the data fee. They can also expect to see their throttling threshold unchanged. AT&T has allotted 22 GB of high-speed data to their customers, which will slow down once the threshold is reached.
"As a result of AT&T's network management practices, customers on a smartphone with an Unlimited Data Plan who have exceeded 22 GB of data in a billing period may experience reduced speeds for the remainder of that billing period when using data services at times and in areas that are experiencing network congestion," said AT&T.
Recently, T-Mobile and Verizon had also increased the prices of their unlimited plans by as much as $15 and $20 respectively.
According to T-Mobile CEO John Legere, the price hike comes with added benefits to its customers.
"You can stream video without using any of your data bucket," said Legere in a statement. This includes streaming videos from the carrier's 24 partners such as UStream, Crackle, NBC Sports, Fox Sports, Encore, Starz, Showtime, ESPN, Sling, Hulu, HBO Go, HBO Now and Netflix.
Sprint currently charges $70 for its own plan which offers subscribers similar services.
Once the price hike takes effect, AT&T will also offer its customers the option to cancel their unlimited data plan within 60 days with no early termination fee. Customers still need to pay for their current device payment plan if they have an outstanding balance.
