Verizon doubles data allowance in promotion

NEW YORK |
Mon Nov 7, 2011 4:56pm EST

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Verizon Wireless is aiming to sell more of its fastest wireless phones with a holiday promotion that allows twice as many data downloads for the same price, potentially putting pressure on ATT Inc to follow suit.

For example, instead of limiting usage to 2 gigabytes a month for customers on its $30 plan, the company will offer customers who buy phones with its highest-speed data connections 4 gigabytes of downloads per month.

In comparison its biggest rival ATT charges $25 for 2 gigabytes of data and $15 for 200 gigabytes of data. ATT declined to say whether or not it would change its own pricing in response to Verizon’s move.

In an effort to compete with ATT’s cheaper plan, Verizon is also introducing a $20 per month plan for 300 megabytes of data for customers of all its phones, similar to a promotion it held in the holidays last year for a $15 plan for 150 megabytes.

Their smaller rival Sprint Nextel still offers unlimited data downloads for a set monthly.

Verizon Wireless is also hoping to make more money from text and picture messages by eliminating a $5 plan that allows customers to exchange 250 messages a month. Instead it is raising the text limit to 1,000 from 500 for its $10 plan.

Verizon Wireless, a venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone Group Plc. is the biggest U.S. mobile service.