AT&T (NYSE: T) will no longer be offering unlimited data plans to Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone and iPad users on June 7th.
AT&T instead will be offering a new data plan for iPhone and iPad owners, called “DataPro” which will be offered on June 7th, which will provide 2 GB of data for $25.00 per month. AT&T will also begin allowing iPhone users to add tethering to their devices for an additional $20.00 per month. Tethering will allow users to use their handset’s internet connection to provide access to another device, such as a laptop. AT&T plans to begin offering tethering this summer to coincide with the release of iPhone OS 4
The carrier is also offering a less expensive data plan, called “DataPlus” which will offer 200 MB for $15.00 per month. The company noted that 65% of its users use less than 200 MB per month and 98% of its users use less than 2 GB per month.
The company also said that it would be ending its $29.99 per month unlimited 3G data plans for its new customers. Instead, iPad users can purchase 2 GB of data for $25.00 per month. Existing customers will not be required to change their plans.
“AT&T helps mobilize everything on the Internet — your favorite web sites, TV shows, music, games and social networks. Virtually everything previously done while sitting at a computer can now be done on the go,” commented Ralph de la Vega, CEO of AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “To give more people the opportunity to experience these benefits, we’re breaking free from the traditional ‘one-size-fits-all’ pricing model and making the mobile Internet more affordable to a greater number of people.”
On Tuesday, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said that he believed AT&T was doing a “pretty good” job in improving its network, but admitted that AT&T “could do better”, speaking at the Wall Street Journal’s D Conference. Jobs said that Apple meets with AT&T executives on a quarterly basis to discuss issues and noted that AT&T has to deal with “way more data traffic than anyone else.”
