The Verge's Dan Seifert on T-Mobile's growing divergence from the usual business of being a cellular carrier.
T-Mobile's new plans are significantly different than the industry is accustomed to — most international roaming plans are prohibitively expensive and have limited caps for data and text messaging. T-Mobile notes that 40 percent of traveling Americans turn off data services on their phones when they are abroad to avoid the exorbitant fees. The carrier says that by removing this bill shock, travelers will be more open to using their phones while overseas. CEO John Legere says that the included countries cover "pretty much everywhere people travel, about 95 percent of where people go."
T-Mobile also got rid of standard subsidy-style contracts, and was the first to develop an annual handset upgrade program as part of the usual bill.
