T AT&T Inc

By Thomas Gryta 

AT&T Inc. is opening up its unlimited wireless data plans to all potential customers, not just those who buy its television service, days after rival Verizon Communications Inc. began offering unlimited plans for the first time since 2011.

Last year, AT&T started offering unlimited data plans, but only to customers who also pay for one of its television services, DirecTV or U-verse, in a bid to retain wireless customers and attract new video households. Smaller rivals T-Mobile US Inc. and Sprint Corp. have been taking market share from the two biggest U.S. carriers by pushing lower prices and plans without data caps.

AT&T's move leaves all four national wireless carriers offering the same plan and leaving price and network claims as the major differences.

AT&T's said it would still sell the unlimited plan for $100 a month for a single phone. That compares with $80 a month at Verizon and $60 at Sprint. T-Mobile sells unlimited data for $70 for one line, including taxes and fees. AT&T is also selling four lines for $180 a month, the same as Verizon.

The shift at Verizon and AT&T comes after years of trying to get customers to pay for data based on usage. The companies argued that the surging growth in data traffic required expensive network upgrades, and unlimited plans prevented carriers from collecting more money as usage rose.

Write to Thomas Gryta at thomas.gryta@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 16, 2017 16:41 ET (21:41 GMT)

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