T-Mobile Unveils Data Stash Plan
For a while now, T-Mobile has been making some waves in the world of mobile, and today’s no different. The company announced the new Uncarrier 8.0 campaign, which includes a “data stash” feature that offers customers access to any unused data from one month, rolled over into the next one.
Said T-Mobile CEO John Legere, quoted by CNET: “If you buy data, it’s yours.”
Starting in January of 2015 – just a few weeks away at this point – T-Mobile consumers will have 10 gigabytes of data added to their stashes. From there, any unused data at the end of a month will be added to the stash, which you can access any time you go over your monthly data allotment.
Essentially, it’s “rollover data,” a concept that first started appearing at phone companies way back in the day when landline companies provided divisions of “minutes” to their customers. If you had a certain number of long distance or out of network minutes and you didn’t use them all, you’d be able to roll them over to the next billing cycle. The idea came back when mobile carriers emphasized “minutes” even more. Since then, unlimited talk and text has become almost standard among wireless carriers, with data becoming the new “minutes,” if that makes sense.
This new feature sounds interesting, and I’m looking forward to seeing whether or not it impacts my own T-Mobile plan. I split a plan with my girlfriend, and we’ve got very different consumption patterns. I have an unlimited data plan, which means that I’ll never technically use more data than I’m allowed, though I usually get throttled once I hit a certain data usage point. My lady, on the other hand, wanted the cheapest data plan available, and has only one gig for free each month. Will she use it up? If so, how much data will she bank each month? Moreover, will this new feature bring even more customers to T-Mobile and away from the other carriers? And how long will it be until other carriers start offering this feature too?
This isn’t the first time T-Mobile has brought some major shakeups to the wireless industry, either. In early 2014, they offered to cover up to $350 in cancellation fees for new customers who wanted to switch but were locked in contracts at other carriers. That’s how they got me! While data rollover doesn’t seem like quite as dramatic an offer, it still might turn a few more heads.
[Source: CNET]