AT&T Hikes Prices for Older Mobile Plans Amid Rising Inflation

    
    Sarah Tew/CNET
    AT&T has announced price hikes for its older mobile plans and is encouraging subscribers to upgrade to the carrier’s newer Unlimited plans.?
    Monthly fees for non-Unlimited plans will increase up to $6 per month for single-line customers and up to $12 per month for family accounts, according to Bloomberg, which first reported the news. AT&T cited higher business costs as a reason for increasing rates in a statement emailed to CNET.
    While AT&T didn’t expressly blame inflation in its statement, the company has acknowledged the impact of the?40-year high of 8.5% inflation on its business. “There’s no question that there’s pressure across a broad segment of goods and services, and we’re not insulated from that. I don’t think anybody in the industry is insulated from that, and it’s not a good position,” CEO John Stankey said during April’s second quarter earnings call.?
    Separately, AT&T announced that internet subscribers will see their monthly bill increase by $3, but only if they subscribe to standard broadband service. Customers who use other AT&T offerings like fiber, fixed wireless or legacy DSL won’t see the price bump, according to Fierce Telecom.
    Customers affected by the mobile price hikes will get a bill message and email informing them of the changes as well as a nudge to switch to a newer plan.
    “We are encouraging our customers to explore our newer plans which offer many additional features, more flexibility for each line on their account and, in many cases, a lower monthly cost,” according to the statement.
    Subscribers are feeling the higher inflation, too, seeing?around $300 added to monthly expenses. It remains to be seen whether they bow to AT&T’s pressure to adopt a higher-cost plan or push back.