Andre Yoskowitz
3 Jun 2012 14:43
AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson has said this week that data-only plans are likely coming to a carrier within two years.
For such a plan, voice calls and texts will just be considered data.
Says Stephenson: "I'll be surprised if, in the next 24 months, we don't see people in the market place with data-only plans. I just think that's inevitable."
The plan makes considerable sense, given the trend for smartphones. AT&T for one, has seen a decline in the average of minutes used each month for some time now. Many consumers already use Google Voice and Skype to send texts and make calls that only require data and not actual voice/cell service.
However, carriers still make the brunt of their profits from voice plans and texting, each of which use little to no data.
In order to remove the cell plans and the small fees that carriers charge to connect numbers, a data-only plan will likely be considerably more expensive than current data plans.