T-Mobile announced on Thursday that it is tackling yet another pain point in the wireless industry that most (but not all) have ignored for years: hidden fees and taxes.
As it stands today, most wireless providers advertise a set rate for a specific plan but once your bill comes in, the amount you owe is actually a bit more once you factor in various hidden fees, charges and taxes. Come January 22, T-Mobile says it'll effectively eliminate those price hikes by rolling them into the advertised cost of the rate plan.
Speaking of plans, T-Mobile really wants people to use the T-Mobile One unlimited plan that rolled out back in September. On January 22, the company will be eliminating its older plans, electing instead to only offer new customers its One plan. Current T-Mobile users on different plans can be grandfathered in if they so choose.
For light data users that may not utilize an unlimited data plan to its full potential, there's a new program called Kickback in which T-Mobile will give those who use 2GB of data or less each month a $10 bill credit.
Last but not least, T-Mobile announced a "tax rebate" promotion in which it'll offer $150 to every customer that switches from another carrier to team magenta - no handset trade-in required. The offer applies to every line transferred, not just $150 for a family of four, for example.
T-Mobile's latest moves are no doubt a welcomed change but nothing here is really groundbreaking or industry-shaking. Cricket, a pre-paid provider that operates on the AT&T network, has been providing a flat rate with fees and taxes rolled in for years now while Google's Project Fi, an MVNO powered by Sprint, T-Mobile and U.S. Cellular, provides its customers with a refund for data that goes unused each month.