Last month, Rogers increased the price of their data overages for new customers, hiking the price up 40% from $5 to $7 per 100MB—or $70 per gigabyte. Now, it appears their flanker brand Fido has caught up and matched these overages.
Fido’s latest Pulse Plans, as we told you yesterday, are also currently offering more data, a simultaneous addition–coincidentally timed–with Telus’ Koodo and Bell’s Virgin.
Fido’s website got a revamp for their plans, which makes it difficult to navigate to see where the cost of overages are. Users need to click unintuitive ‘circular arrows’ to flip the page on plan details to see overage prices, now charged at $7 per 100MB. By having constantly updated websites, it makes it difficult for Canadians to track price and plan changes.
“We’re providing larger data buckets at no extra cost that match how customers are using their phones to help them avoid overage. Our goal is to take the worry out of data usage,” the company told MobileSyrup.
Bell also charges $70/1GB for data overages. Meanwhile, the website for their flanker brand Virgin Mobile, doesn’t even list the cost of data overages for monthly plans for prospective customers anymore. Telus and Koodo still charge $5/100MB or $50/1GB.
The bottom line: if you’re a new wireless customer with Rogers or Fido, you’re going to be paying a lot more for data overages.
Update: A Fido representative responded to our story in an email to say “The overall purpose is to simplify our rate card with updated plan names and larger data buckets that match how customers are using their phones,” referring to how the extra 1GB data per plan is permanent, while the 10GB plan saw a $10 price drop.
Also, about 90% of Fido customers aren’t charged data overages in a given month, while the company’s new Data Bytes feature offers 5 hours of free data per month. But these still don’t change the fact data overages are $70/1GB.
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i thought the CRTC cut this nonsense down?
terrible and so disappointing at the same time… not coming back to Robbers any time soon. switched internets too. not that customer loyalty matters any more ( arguably for many years now ) – but after almost 20 years with Robbers, they had nothing they could offer me to stay.
They can charge a maximum $100 of overages… so they are making the overage higher so it gets applied to more people.
Christ.
This only applies to new contracts right? If we don’t change our contract at all we’re grandfathered in to the old prices?
They cannot apply this to existing contracts, no worries. I’ll stick to my 10$/500Mb overage rate (although I have plenty of data at 4GB for 34$…).
Actually, they can, with 30 days notice. Don’t spread misinformation.
Technically they can, yes, you’re right. This is more of an escape clause for them in case they later realize the plan didn’t make business sense for them (i.e. unlimited use/data). I have had cell phone plans with Fido since they were Microcell, 20 years ago, and they have never tampered with an existing plan.
If they want to “take the worry” out of data usage, increasing the fee for going over isn’t the way to do it…
Looking at Fido’s revamped plan pages, it seems (in QC at least) that “Pulse” plans (the one with Data Bytes, 6 month Spotify and Fido Roam) now start at 49$ for 6GB. Lower priced plans with data are no longer classified as “Pulse”.
Another shady move by Canada’s wireless cartel. How useless can the CRTC be?
Meh…nothing new in Canada. One more reason supporting the fact that the CRTC is a joke.
“Virgin Mobile, doesn’t even list the cost of data overages for monthly plans for prospective customers anymore.”
Are you sure about that? Click on “More info” on the Phone Plans page, and you will see: “Data use over what is included in your plan is $7/100 MB.”
I don’t see it?
Well, I do.