• Better Value Plan comprises three lines from $140 per month
• Tariff includes international roaming, streaming and D2D features
• Offering comes after new Verizon chief announced a major refocus on core customers

T-Mobile US has announced a new low-cost tariff plan aimed at families as it looks to stave off increasing competition from its main rivals AT&T and, in particular, Verizon. 

T-Mobile’s new Better Value Plan requires the user to have three lines to qualify and starts at $140 per month. It also includes several benefits including bundled streaming services, unlimited data abroad and direct-to-device satellite-enabled connectivity from the operator’s T-Satellite service, which was launched last year with Starlink as its low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite partner.

The monthly package includes unlimited premium data on the operator’s 5G network as well as 30 Gbytes of data outside the US (including in neighbouring markets Mexico and Canada, as well as 215 other countries worldwide). The bundle also includes Netflix and Hulu, through its On Us entertainment offering, and Apple TV at a discount.

According to T-Mobile US, the Better Value Plan could save families more than $1,000 when compared with similar offers from rivals AT&T and Verizon, or $50 per month for those currently on T-Mobile’s Essentials plan.

The operator has also built in a five-year price guarantee on voice, SMS and data services.

“Families are looking for ways to save and get more value from the services they rely on every day, especially wireless,” stated Mike Katz, chief business and product officer at T-Mobile US.

“We’re going beyond one-time phone deals and giving families over $1,000 in savings not just this year – but in the years to come – compared to AT&T and Verizon, with our best, most benefit-packed plan that’s backed by a five-year price guarantee,” he added.

The new packages come as competition hots up in the US. In early October last year, Verizon unexpectedly appointed Dan Schulman as its new CEO, replacing Hans Vestberg, who had held the role since 2018. Former PayPal and Virgin Media chief Schulman said his aim was to turn Verizon’s focus back towards its customers by cutting costs, divesting unprofitable parts of Verizon’s business and making Verizon a scrappier company.

During an earnings call, Schulman said: “Verizon is at a critical inflection point. For years, our priority was clear: Build the best and most reliable network. With that foundation firmly in place, our next chapter is about serving and delighting customers by building the industry’s best overall value proposition and the best customer experience.”

That was a clear challenge to T-Mobile US, which has always marketed itself as the scrappy telco in the US race, even branding itself as the “Uncarrier”. But since it merged with Sprint in 2020, it has been the second-largest provider in terms of mobile subscriptions, behind Verizon, and has closed the gap in terms of revenue on AT&T.

This reset of its tariffs could be an attempt to cement its position as the mobile operator with the most consumer-friendly option in the US.

The introduction of the new family package comes as T-Mobile US also unveiled plans to raise $2bn by selling senior notes in a registered public offering. In a filing with the SEC, the operator noted it had agreed to sell the stock in an offering due to close on January 12 in order to refinance existing debt and invest in “other general corporate purposes”.

- James Pearce, Editor, TelecomTV