Stating The Obvious: Unlimited Data Plans Increase Usage

from the you-think? dept

Sometimes it's fascinating to see the type of research reports that analyst firms put out. For example, one firm has put out a report supposedly warning all these wireless firms hyping up "unlimited" plans that unlimited plans tend to increase usage. You think? Really? One would have hoped, given the long history of unlimited usage plans in other fields, that the mobile operators would have understood the basic economics equation in moving to such plans. Of course, what this also ignores is that the same "unlimited" usage often helps create much greater value because it opens up the possibility of new applications and services that simply weren't possible before. If the internet had remained a pay-per-hour solution (as it was for many in the early years) it never would have become nearly as useful, and the value of having an internet connection would have been significantly lower. So, yes, it can increase the strain on a network for providers who aren't prepared (or unwilling to understand the basic incentive structure), but it also tends to increase the overall value of having access. And that should only mean good things for the firms that offer such access.

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