Verizon Wireless altered its Edge device financing offering, expanding the time in which customers make monthly payments to two years and requiring a greater percentage of that device to be paid off before they can take advantage of the plan’s upgrade policy.
Verizon Wireless initially launched Edge in mid-2013 in response to similar offers from rivals. The plan initially allowed customers to spread out the cost of a device over a 24-month period, with customers only required to pay the first month installment upfront. After six months and with at least 50% of the device’s total price paid, customers could trade the device in for a new phone with the same payment requirements.
Verizon Wireless has since adjusted the model to spread out device pricing over a 20-month period, which raised the monthly fee and average spending per customer, with customers able to turn their device in for a new one after 30 days if 60% of the device’s overall price has been paid.
The latest change reverts the pricing to be spread out over a 24-month period and requires customers to pay off at least 75% of the device before trading it in on a new model. That pushes the timeframe on a regular payment plan from 12 months out to 18 months.
Verizon Wireless earlier this year linked a discount on its More Everything shared data plans to customers enrolling in its Edge program. That offer cut the per-line cost of adding a smartphone to a data bucket by $10 per month for data buckets of eight gigabytes or less and $25 per month for data buckets of 10 GB or larger. The carrier’s latest change will see the smaller discount enlarged to $15 per month, with the $25 discount remaining unchanged. Basic phones will continue with a $10 per month discount regardless of data bucket size.
The More Everything plans also witnessed some change, with the entry-level 500-megabyte plan dropping in price by $10 per month to $20, with data overages priced at $15 per 250 MB. The carrier also discontinued a previously launched promotional offer that provided a single line of service with unlimited domestic voice calling, text messaging and 2 GB of data for $60 per month for subsidized devices or $50 per month for customers that select its Edge program. That package is now priced at $90 and $75 respectively.
Verizon Wireless earlier this month boosted the size of its larger data buckets in response to similar moves by AT&T Mobility and Sprint.
The moves toward device financing have allowed mobile operators to cut back on up-front costs tied to traditional device subsidies and to move monthly charges from service plans to device payments.
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