Mobile Broadband Price Gouging.

[Andrew_A]

I'm realize I'm not the first person to post about this. But I have to add my voice to others. The prices Verizon charges for mobile broadband, and especially for "overages" are obscene. The average plan amounts to $5 per gigabyte. The overage charge is $15 per gigabyte. It is utterly unacceptable to punish your customers in that kind of draconian fashion for going over arbitrary caps that you put in place. It is naked profiteering.

trust charges. Broadband internet access is rapidly becoming no different from any public utility. It is a requirement for modern society. There are areas where Verizon is the only option, or one of only two options. The price gouging they engage in is unacceptable. I readily admit to being a heavy user. But the amount they're charging for going over their caps is unjustifiable. Something has got to change. I will continue to explore other options, and as soon as one becomes available that meets my needs, I will get away from Verizon as fast as I can.

At a minimum, they should charge one rate for every gigabyte used. Caps and overage penalties are a racket that Verizon is using to fleece its customers.

[Ann154]

You can always change your data plan and have it backdated to avoid the overage fees.

[Andrew_A]

Simply put, I believe it should be illegal for them to set arbitrary caps, charge $5 per gigabyte under the cap, and then charge $15 per gigabyte as soon as you go over the cap. The price of the service to them has not increased. They're running a racket.

[Ann154]

They set at the price at what the market could bear. The other Wireless carriers mobile broadband options are priced similarly.

Perhaps you should look into the available landline based Internet providers are in your area?

[Andrew_A]

There are none. The only other option is satellite, which is a subpar service.

The question is not what "the market can bear". The question is whether it's ethical to charge 3 times more for the same service after an arbitrary cap that they set, for a service that is increasingly as necessary to most people as electricity.

It is also worth questioning why there are so few options, and whether Verizon is taking steps to prevent competition.

[dirkbonn]

First, they are not arbitrary caps, you choose the one you want.  Verizon does not pick it for you.

Second, Internet access is not like a public utility.  Prices for public utilities are set by the PUC because utilities don't have competition to control their prices.  Public utilities are the only game in town, that's why their prices are controlled.

Wireless access has lots of competition, Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile are the big 4, Then there are the smaller wireless phone companies that vary based on geographic location and to numerous to list.

If Verizon doesn't suit you, switch.  Since you are an admitted heavy user, try Sprint. I hear they advertise "unlimited" data.

Best of luck, whatever you decide to do.

[Andrew_A]

First, the caps are arbitrary. They are set at the discretion of Verizon. There is no logistical reason for them, it is purely about revenue. Second, neither of you has addressed the fundamental question, which is how it's acceptable to charge 3 times as much for the same service after an arbitrary limit.