Comments on: Infographic: The AT&T and Verizon Duopoly

By: Donkey Dodger

Donkey Dodger — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 19:42:00 +0000

You’re wrong, sorry. Many times if people lost their data phone I would switch them to a backup feature phone. No ETF.

By: victor manso

victor manso — Thu, 10 May 2012 22:03:00 +0000

I commented just for fun, I really sorry , I am conscious that my English is horrible, I’m just trying to learning it correctly because English is my second language . Finally your analysis is absolutely true !

By: Taglogical

Taglogical — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 01:19:00 +0000

I didn’t have a data plan on my cell phone prior to the Droid. Obviously, the avg will go up significantly as entire product lineups roll to smart phones which require data plans.

By: PC_Tool

PC_Tool — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 18:38:00 +0000

They don’t “owe” anyone. You are right. They don’t have to give anyone the breakdown.

…but without it, no-one can knowledgeably claim what they are
claiming….as there are simply no numbers to back those claims up with.

…and that article doesn’t even come close. Instead we get people
posting, “Well, the CEO himself commented on it”…when he did
absolutely nothing of the sort.

By: Ken_P_619

Ken_P_619 — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 17:59:00 +0000

Not really…short of actually breaking down their P&L statements or sitting with their accounting department you aren’t going to see actual numbers from this. But what you are ignoring are the company’s leaders and third party analysts’ diagnosis of the problem. They owe nothing to you to show you their exact numbers.

By: Ken_P_619

Ken_P_619 — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 17:55:00 +0000

You’re telling me you don’t understand how a company can claim a loss in Q4, but not make billions in profit from the actual year? They recorded 11% profit in 2011, but claimed a loss in Q4 of 2011…please tell me you understand how that works.

By: Ferradinho

Ferradinho — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 17:47:00 +0000

I was going to say the exact same thing, there were a TON of inaccuracies in that article on top of what you mentioned. Users can drop from a smartphone to a basic phone at any time with no cost. I have no idea where they get the info for the data plans. Verizon doesn’t have a $55 or $65 data plan. And if you are on LTE it’s not just double at the $30 plan but you get 10GB @ $50 and 20GB @ $80. No one factors in the cost to build and maintain the network (and back-haul) when considering the amount of data use compared to a year or ago. And the MVNO’s don’t have their own networks that they invest in, they only have very limited roaming agreements. And a Sprint/T-Mobile still market unlimited data but how unlimited is it really when you are throttled down to 1x at 2GB. I’d rather pay a little extra on an reliable connection for what I use than drop to 1x speeds or not be able to use data where I need it.
And seriously do people not remember how much cell service cost 10-15 years ago for voice only? And phone prices too how about the StarTAC that launched at $1000 or the iPhone that originally launched at $599 on contract.

By: CORYK333

CORYK333 — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 16:39:00 +0000

What??? Where is there a # in my post?? Learn to read, clown.

By: VZW Guy

VZW Guy — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 03:06:00 +0000

There are some inaccuracies on this info graph… I can only speak for the Verizon side because I work for a VZW retailer.

1: “Last year, Verizon made hundreds of millions charging $2 for the 0.02 kilobytes used every time iPhone users accidentally hit the key, ‘take me to the web’”

- You can’t have an iPhone without a data package… there is no charge per use option. Minimum data plan is $30 for 2GB (outside of promo plans). As such there is no way this one is true.

2: ”Common Verizon Mistake: You, like the average smartphone user, only end up using 1GB/monthly. COST TO DOWNSIZE: Verizon charges smartphone subscribers up to $350 for terminating 24 mos. data contracts.”

- Once again there are problems with this… You can drop your data plan at any time if you wish. Any customer can walk into my store with a used basic phone, or purchase one full retail, and have their number put on it to drop the data plan. The data feature is NOT contracted, only the service plan (voice plan/texting). The early termination fee is accurate, as that is the maximum cancellation fee for a contract that started with a smartphone. This fee goes down by $10/billing cycle while you have service. The ONLY time you will be charged this is when you decide to actually cancel your VZW contract.

Sidebar: On the limited support one… I have rarely waited more than 5 minutes to get a person on the line with VZW. They are always US call centers, and I have no problem getting my issue solved as both a dealer and a customer.

To everyone else fear mongering about VZW doing away with grandfathered data plans: I sincerely doubt this will happen. The 4G network costs far less than 3G does to supply 1GB of data, Big Red wants you to have your unlimited 4G phone… There is even a lovely 4G Unlimited tethering plan for $30 on top of your regular data plan if you are grandfathered in on unlimited data. I would not be surprised to see unlimited or more data offered again when a majority of the smartphone customer base is on 4G.

By: s2000az

s2000az — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 00:59:00 +0000

Fyi, Verizon still offers unl data plans on smartphones on prepaid for 30 dollars a month.

By: PC_Tool

PC_Tool — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 23:52:00 +0000

Ugh…

The CEO is not commenting on iPhone sales and revenue..he’s commenting on future LTE revenue.

Did you even read it?

The author’s commentary on the sales are not backed up anywhere with actual numbers and he even glosses over the whole pension bit…barely even mentioning it at the bottom.

Where are the “iPhone sales revenue” vs. …”anything else” numbers for the carriers? You;’d think…if this story we keep hearing were true…these numbers would be plastered everywhere, wouldn’t they?

By: Tim242

Tim242 — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 22:04:00 +0000

Your logic makes no sense. If they recorded a $300,000,000 loss in q4, how do you figure they are making billions in the other 3 quarters to just line their pockets? It costs a lot to build a network, maintain a network, pay employees to run the company, and pay subsidies on phones. All other companies have charged upgrade fees for years. At least Verizon has something to show for it.

By: Ken_P_619

Ken_P_619 — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 22:00:00 +0000

Here is another article that quotes cost analysts and Verizon CEO on how the iphone loses Verizon money. Maybe this helps you.

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/technology/2012/01/how-verizon-losing-money-iphone/47765/#

By: Ken_P_619

Ken_P_619 — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 21:55:00 +0000

I guess my point is just because they recorded a loss in Q4 doesn’t mean they aren’t making billions in profit..and if they are making that much without the additional fees/costs even implemented yet…why are we paying more? just to line their pockets?

By: CheeseMcGee

CheeseMcGee — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 21:43:00 +0000

Email me – ryunforsman AT gmail DOT com and I’ll send you info and photos.