Frontier Ties $20 Broadband Promotion to Phone Service

Frontier introduced a new broadband promotion that offers a no contract $19.99 broadband service, with a three year price lock, provided customers also subscribe to Frontier phone service. The promotion basically knocks $10 off of Frontier’s entry level broadband product for agreeing to a phone line.

Traditional telcos like Frontier are trying to find a balance between migrating to a broadband company, while also trying to preserve their legacy phone service. Promotions like these are an execution of that balancing act. The offer is for new Internet customers and appears to target current Frontier phone customers who buy their broadband service from Frontier competitors, particularly cable companies

The deal features Frontier’s DSL service, of up to 6 Mbps, positioning it as a value play against higher priced cable modem services. Customers can “double” the broadband speed for an additional $10 per month, provided they are in an area where Frontier offers faster speeds. The deal also includes a Wi-Fi router.

“It gives consumers an awesome amount of flexibility and choice. By offering new broadband speed tiers to residential and commercial customers and eliminating contracts and early termination fees on our residential offers, we are truly simplifying the broadband experience,” said Cecilia K. McKenney, Executive Vice President of Administrative Services at Frontier in a press release.

This offer, in effect, is a $50 double play bundle for phone and broadband. That $50 can go up or down a few dollars, depending on which phone package the customer selects. It also does not include taxes or regulatory fees. The bundled price is locked for three years, and it does not include any early termination fee, although Frontier does list a “…$9.99 broadband processing fee upon disconnection of service.” Frontier is waiving a $49.99 installation fee if customers choose to do a self install.

The promotion is positioned within Frontier’s “Simple Choice” campaign, which touts a simple experience for buying broadband, with no contracts, or “plan-cuffs” as they call them. They are taking direct aim at cable modem services by eliminating contracts, modem fees, and other “confusing” terms that they believe customers perceive about competing cable broadband offers.