It’s a subject that’s caused a fair bit of debate and discussion over the last year or so. Lots of you want more of it, mobile networks seem to be reducing it, some of you are scared of it, but on the whole, the vast majority of us just don’t understand it.
If you hadn’t guessed, I’m talking about data. And today we’ve announced something that we think is going to tip the idea of data on your mobile completely on its head.
Before I go into the ‘what’, here’s a bit on the ‘why’.
We know that not understanding data, is one of the biggest barriers to really making the most of what you can do on your smartphone. We all know what a minute feels like, or roughly how many texts you might send, but the world of gigabytes, megabytes and fair usage policies is still a mystery to most of us.
And as more and more of us start using smartphones that can stream, download, upload, browse, surf and all that other data related stuff, the problem’s only going to get worse.
So to give you complete peace of mind when you’re using data on your mobiles, we’re making a change to The One Plan, our market-leading price plan that we launched back in July.
From now on, we’ll be removing the 1GB data allowance currently available on The One Plan and replacing it with something completely different.
We’re calling it All-you-can-eat Data, and it’s not like anything you’ll see from anyone else. Unlike other data plans, there are no restrictions and no crafty ‘fair usage’ policies containing hidden data caps. We’re leaving behind the ‘old mobile’ world of limits and allowances in favour of a new world that gives you the freedom to use your smartphone to do everything it was designed for without the worry of cost.
Our new world has no data restrictions, you can use as much as you want and we’ll never charge you a penny more.
If you’ve been to all-you-can-eat restaurants before, you’ll already be familiar how this works. You pay once, you get as much as you want the first time round, and you can still keep coming back for more. And yes, if you want to use your phone as a dongle (also known as tethering) then you absolutely can.
So how is this going to work?
Well, All-you-can-eat Data on The One Plan kicks in now. It’s for new customers, upgrading customers, and customers that are part way through their contracts.
As I mentioned earlier, it’s only for customers on The One Plan at the moment. It doesn’t apply to Mobile Broadband, Pay As You Go, or any of our other Pay Monthly plans. If you’re a mobile customer on any of our other tariffs and you’re tempted by All-you-can-eat Data, you can move to The One Plan at any time.
We’re doing our best to make sure that all of the places we refer to our previous 1GB data limit on The One Plan are updated as quickly as possible, but we can’t tackle them all at once, so please bear with us. If you’re a One Plan customer, you might continue to see 1GB on your bill or on My3 for a little while still, but that’s just because we haven’t been able to change the wording yet. All One Plan customers now have All-you-can-eat Data.
So I hope you like our changes.
We’re taking a bold move and bucking the trend in an industry that seems to be scaling back, not giving more. We’ve invested heavily in our 3G network to make sure it’s in the best position possible to be able to support you in this new world; to make sure that we’re not only giving you quantity when it comes to data, but quality too.
We want to give you complete peace of mind when you’re using data on your phone. And if you’re in the camp that is so scared of ‘bill shock’ that you avoid data altogether, hopefully this will give you the reassurance to give it a try.
1,823 Responses to New All-you-can-eat Data on The One Plan.
Wayne Fox 15/12/2010
I’d be Wary when changing over to the One plan, I was Advise that was the best tariff for me to change over to and that it would be cheaper than my last tariff at only £25 a month.
When I Received my next bill, this was a lot higher than normal, When I rang to query why, I was told because of the Handset I had (HTC Desire) there was an additional £15 per month charge on top of the monthly tariff.
I was not informed of this charge when I was advised to change to the one Plan
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Sol – You definitely can migrate to The One Plan!
Dave Bonham 15/12/2010
Oh well, for the extra £5 I do get 4 times the number of minutes plus the unlimited data plan – I am miffed slightly, but still a wicked plan!! Just hope in 22 months I can get some sort of loyalty bonus above and beyond new user deals!
Cluons 15/12/2010
“So I hope you like our changes.” – mobile broadband prices increased mid-contract and a second price increase for PAYG within a year
“We’re taking a bold move and bucking the trend in an industry that seems to be scaling back, not giving more.” – don’t think I agree with you here
“And if you’re in the camp that is so scared of ‘bill shock’” – I guess the best way then is to run away from 3…
stew 15/12/2010
My initial thoughts on this tariff when it was originally released back in the summer were that whilst it offered a vast amount of minutes and text it wasn’t actually value for money as I, like others, voiced that there was no way we’d get anywhere near using all the minutes /text, 3 know this and thats why they don’t have a cut down One plan alternative,or as it should be known The One & Only plan. When I look back at my monthly usage on average I use 70 mins to landline and other networks. 250 minutes to other 3 mobile and 1000 text. Look at all the wastage 1900 mins to other networks, 4800 3 to 3 and 4000 text. Surely 3 can corner the market and introduce a tariff that offers half of the One Plan and therefore become more cost efficient and capture a large chunk of the £10-20 user market.
Congrats on the unlimited internet usage, its a bold move and I’m sure you’ll attract many new customers
DJ Reyes 15/12/2010
@Moderator Thanks. Will await your reply
Sol 15/12/2010
Drat!
Just started on an Internet texter 500 last month…
need to call 333 see if I can jump over to the 1 Plan…
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Alf – you can indeed. Enjoy!
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Dave Bonham – Really sorry that we’re not able to move you over to The One Plan in a way that you’re happy with. Because you had already signed up to the Internet Texter plan that you’re currently on, the advisor you spoke to would have taken into account the amount that you had already paid towards your HTC Desire HD – hence the £40 per month. Once you’re in your upgrade window there will more options available to us with regards to your monthly fee. I’m sorry that we can’t help you more now.
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Bob Roberts – as we mentioned in our post, we’re working through all of our adverts, web pages and in-store materials at the moment to update how our One Plan price plan is described. As you can image, we reference The One Plan in a lot of places so this is quite a big job to undertake. We wanted to bring this change to our customers as quickly as possible so we didn’t want to wait until we’d updated all of our marketing info before we switched on the change. We can assure you, all-you-can-eat data is available today for all customers on The One Plan! Re your point on the Galaxy Tab, I’m afraid we don’t range this device at the moment, hence why you won’t have found one in any of our Stores.
Alf 15/12/2010
I took on a Galaxy S with a 2 year contract on 3 less than a month ago, on the 1 plan. I can now use my phone’s full capabilities without being concerned about costs. What great news, well done 3, and thanks !
Bob Roberts 15/12/2010
So I saw the press announcements of this plan and thought it would be a great fit for a Samsung Galaxy Tab but when I go to the Three website 1) The One Plan still advertised as having a 1Gb data cap (no way I am agreeing to website T&Cs until the details are correct) and 2) According to the Three website the Samsung Galaxy Tab is not available on the network.
There really is no point in making press releases claiming that certain goods or services are available from Three if you do not have the capacity to actually make the sale.
You should be embarrassed, I know the staff in your high street store were embarrassed not to have a demonstrator model of the Galaxy Tab when I asked, particularly as the Carphone Warehouse directly across the street had one to look at – advertising a Three price plan!
Saif 15/12/2010
OUT ****ING STANDING!!!!!
Brilliant move!!
Awesome
*SMILES* all round
Well done 3!!
Dave Bonham 15/12/2010
What a joke – just called 333 and told that it would cost an additional £5 per month IE £40.00 per month to move up to the 1 Plan. Yet website offers same phone I have on the 1 Plan for £35.00. It would seem that 3 don’t value exisiting users who have been loyal with them for years (like me) as much as new customers.
Not much I can do now as my 2 year contract has 23 months left, but time to start cancelling my other 2 1 month rolling contracts I have. Whatever happened to rewards for loyalty?
Moderator 15/12/2010
@jimbo – great news! We know we haven’t quite got around to updating all of our ads or web pages yet, but we’re on the case
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Dave Bonham – Our prices do change from time-to-time, but I’d suggest giving us a call on 333 to find out exactly what the price would be for you if you decided to move over to The One Plan.
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Tom – I’m sorry you feel this way about the changes that we’ve made to our Mobile Broadband price plans. We’ve tried to keep the increase we’ve made in line with inflation to an absolute minimum. We’re confident that our price plans are still a great distance ahead in offering best value in the market.
Ryan Hayes 15/12/2010
Bold and brave move. It will at least get people in the industry talking and yet again bring 3 some good headlines in the right places.
Moderator 15/12/2010
@DJ Reyes – Let us double check this for you, we’ll get back to you asap.
jimbo 15/12/2010
Nice i saw this today and got on the phone for my upgarde and signed up for the £35 a month plan, i would say though the adverts and the one page needs changing as it still says 1GB of data per month this will put some people off untill its changed
Dave Bonham 15/12/2010
Great news on 1 Plan unlimited data – however, I upgraded beginning of November to an HTC Desire HD on Internet Texter 500 costing £35.00 per month. At that time, the same phone on your website was advertised at £40 per month on the 1 plan. Now, the same phone on the 1 plan is down to £35.00 the same as I pay for Internet Texter 500. If I change my tarrif to the 1 Plan, can I get it for the cost the 3 website is now showing?
Cheers
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Ibrahim – you can remove with 30 days notice, so just give us a call. If you’re authorised on your wife’s account then you can do this for her
Tom 15/12/2010
Will the clause that allows 3 to increase peoples prices mid contract by an unspecified percentage above inflation be removed from peoples contracts? or will that be staying so you can rip your customers off further down the line just as you are doing with your mobile broadband customers
DJ Reyes 15/12/2010
Does this include BlackBerry devices? I know you can get a BlackBerry device on The One Plan by just paying an extra £5 for the BlackBerry data service. I wanted to know if tethering from a BlackBerry would come out of the all you can eat data?
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Tom Norton – Yep it allows streaming of audio and video
Tom Norton 15/12/2010
I’m currently on O2 with a SIM only deal for my iPhone 4. Does the One Plan with 3 allow streaming of audio and video? I know it’s against the AUP on O2.
Ibrahim Gucukoglu 15/12/2010
Hi Mod. Sorry, I almost forgot, my wife has the internet and email add-on at a cost of £5 which gives her the 2 gig, you were trumpetting this as the extention to the one plan’s 1 gig allowance at the time, anything I need to do about this? I’m an authorized contact on her account so I can remove this if I need to however I await your advice.
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Ibrahim – Glad we’ve made you smile
The X-Series add-on is a fix for the restricted websites, so you will still need this. We’re working on a long-term solution for our over-18 customers to be able to visit these sites but the X-Series add-on is the only fix at the mo.
Ibrahim Gucukoglu 15/12/2010
Hi Mod. What can I say? Wow springs to mind *smile*. Just one question I have and it relates to x series silver. I had this put on my plan as I wanted to visit certain websites you were blocking as adult content. The advisor I just spoke to in Customer Services has now tagged this for removal on my next billing date, but if I still wanted to visit filtered websites, will I need to put this add-on back on to my account? Also, what about the 2GB this comes with.
stew 15/12/2010
@Bill, as someone who has no other form of internet, 3 is my only access to the net. For me I would be what you call a heavy user. I always run out of data allowance weeks before my renewal date. This very much seems a too good to be true offer and I feel that once I get into heavy downloading 3 will throttle my usage or cut me off quoting small print fair usage policy
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Stew – You can indeed use your phone for tethering
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Phil – Thanks, we’re pleased you think it’s a good move
Nope The One Plan price will remain the same.
stew 15/12/2010
So I can even plug my phone into my computer and use it as a dongle?
Phil 15/12/2010
@trevorbennett how are you mate?
Great move from three.
One question though, will the all you can eat data on the one plan push up the price of the tariff?
Bill 15/12/2010
There goes the neighbourhood!
Seriously, one of the reasons Three is a good bet for data now is the low number of users which has a positive impact on contention. If this offering is popular, Three could end up in the same state O2 did in the early days of the iPhone — too many punters chasing too little bandwidth.
On the other hand, my guess is that very few punters exceed their 1GB allowance as it stands, and this is more about attention-getting marketing than anything else. I have an iPad and an iPhone on Three and struggle to use anything like 1GB between them. “All you can eat” might draw in new business, but — as with buffet restaurants — the vast majority will end up “eating” no more than they would have done anyway.
Moderator 15/12/2010
@AJE – If you mean can you use your phone for tethering
Yes you can.
AJE 15/12/2010
Well this is certainly making the headlines on other websites.
As a matter of interest, does the unlimited data include when you are using your mobile for other devices to piggy-back onto the web? (I’m sorry, I know there is a technical term for this but I was born before 1990!!!!)
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Stew – Well there’re definitely no plans to do that Stew. The One Plan is our hero plan designed specifically for smartphones. All our plans include a generous data allowance but if you want complete peace of mind then The One Plan is the best option
stew 15/12/2010
Mmm, I think ill wait 6 months, I’ve a feeling this will get filtered down to your other tariffs.
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Stew – Sorry we’ve given you such a dilemma Stew, but we can’t make that decision for you
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Brando Billingham – if you’re one of our iPhone customers on The One Plan then this kicks in for you today. If you’re on any of our other plans and you’re tempted by all-you-can-eat data you can move to The One Plan at any time.
stew 15/12/2010
@mod -aaaggh what a dilemma! With my sim only £10 a month phone and my £15 a month mobile broadband this adds up to £25 but gives me more any network minutes and unlimited (hopefully )internet. Down side is I’d be in a 12 month contract and would lose my cancel at any time option which I currently have. As a public sector worker facing uncertain times getting tied into a 12 month plan could be a bad move. Oh what am I to do?!
Brandon Billingham 15/12/2010
Great guys but how about being the first to do this with your iPhone cutomers!!
Moderator 15/12/2010
@Greg Draven – Brilliant – good timing!
Yep, you can ignore the MB count that you see in My3 – all One Plan customers now have all-you-can-eat data, it’s just going to take us a bit of time to get our website up to date. We didn’t want to wait any longer to bring it too you all!
Greg Draven 15/12/2010
Hey guys.
I have just upgraded to the one plan as of the 12th of this month.
This is awesome news. I have been with 3 pretty much since you started in the UK.
This is another first guys. Well done.
One small question. My MB’s in My3 are still counting down from 1024 Mb.
They are currently on about 960Mb left.
Can I now ignore this?
Cheers.
Greg.
Moderator 15/12/2010
@stew – It’s true, honest! We’ve moved away from limits so that you can use data to your heart’s content on your phone on The One Plan. Our SIM Only deals start at £25 a month – The One Plan.
Nigel Jones 15/12/2010
That is quite astounding. I started using “xseries” on three quite a few years back which had a similar goal, at least for phone applications, though in practice there was a 1 & then 2 GB FUP (which I never yet). Tethering wasn’t included though I did use it very sparingly.
This new announcement, whilst of course on the more expensive plan is quite something – permits tethering (which works great with n900, android etc). Definately demonstrates three’s commitment to data, which I’m fully behind (though I struggle personally due to specific location coverage).
Very compelling and market leading. Huge differentiator. Can’t see the other nets technically capable of matching this – hope you guys are on the ball wrt identifying congestion/upgrades
stew 15/12/2010
Can this really be true? Genuinely no limits, I can use as much as I want every month with no data throttling or a certain amount of gig a month limit? I was actually thinking of cancelling my mobile broadband and getting cable broadband with Virgin as I was fed up with running out of monthly data. If this is as advertised and not crippled in some way then I’m interested. How much is the One Plan?
Trevor Bennett 15/12/2010
Wow, three you’ve done it again!
As someone who’s already in the one plan, this is excellent news. This really is going to reaffirm the you are THE data network, well done! Trevor
chris smith 15/12/2010
I’m the first to give three abuse when they mess up, but this is truly a breakthrough for mobile customers. Well done three-dimensional