Family plans for voice and data were a major factor in driving widespread adoption of mobile devices in entire households, and family data plans are fully expected to spur adoption of smart phones and data plan usage.
In 2003, family plans accounted for less than 10 percent of the U.S. market, where by 2007 they accounted for 41 percent of adult mobile subscriptions, and 56 percent of new activations. Family plans revolutionize the market
In 2005, researchers at the Yankee Group noted that “family plans have been the main driver of teen cell phone adoption during the past few years.Family plans drive teen mobile adoption
As recently as 2007, 71 percent of all family plans involved only two lines, while Ericsson Business Consulting suggested at the time that nearly 60 percent of family plan accounts, the master account holder is using 75 percent or more of the monthly bucket minutes. Impact of family plans
Contrast that with the situation late in 2011, when the heaviest usage is probably not on a parent’s line, but on the teen and young adult devices. That would be true both for voice as well as text messaging. In many families, it was children who got parents using text messaging, which were, pre-2007, “data services,” as mobile broadband had not begun to be adopted on a wide scale.
Most observers also would say that family plans drove text messaging adoption and contributed to lower churn, as well.
A study by Strategy Analytics suggests that 60 percent of smart phone owners want a single, shared data plan to connect multiple devices like tablets, smartphones and laptops. About
50 percent of smart phone owners are interested in connecting multiple devices through tethering to their smart phone and 40 percent have an interest in a standalone 3G portable WiFi router (like the MiFi from Novatel Wireless) to connect all their devices. Consumers want family data plans
Executives at AT&T and Sprint also have been talking about the changes for years, and it appears the plans finally will be offered. Though it appears specific policies are not yet fully worked out, the plans will encourage purchases of smart phones and data usage across a range of devices on a single account. Policies not set yet
“I think in 2012 we will see it,” McAdam said.UBS webcast
At the moment, not that many service providers offer family data plans, and most plans are not the robust plans we typically see in the U.S. market for texting and voice.
Since the spring of 2011, Orange has been offering two devices per data plan, bundling 600 minutes, unlimited texts, unlimited BTZone WiFi access, and 2 GBytes of shared data across for iPad and iPhone users, for example, with a cost of
