US mobile operators -- fastest way to customer loyalty is shared data plans

A frequent occurrence in mobile news is word that one mobile operator or another is jerking customers around by levying unreasonable data fees. The days of unlimited data plans are largely over, and tiered plans with data caps are the now the norm. Customers with grandfathered unlimited data plans are having to sue carriers to stop the disgusting practice of throttling data service when a single user taps too much of the carrier's bandwidth.

It's as if the carriers have decided as a group that customer loyalty takes a back seat to grabbing as much of the mobile data pie as possible. This business model cannot survive in the long-term, as households are increasingly getting multiple devices that need data plans. The first carrier to implement fair shared data plans will leap to the forefront of the competitive U. S. data market.

Customers have conceded that unlimited data plans are gone, but would embrace reasonable capped data plans that could be shared among family members and multiple devices. It's getting common to find folks with both smartphones and tablets, so the shared plan makes good sense to meet customer's needs.

We all want something for nothing, but I bet we'd line up to pay $100 per month for 10GB of data that can be shared by up to five devices. The bucket of data could be used however needed, and we'd pay willingly for the privilege. Rolling over the unused portion of that monthly plan would be wonderful, but honestly I think we'd forget it if we could just have that shared bucket of data to use however we want, by anyone in the household.

Currently I don't know many people who are happy with their data provider, but I'll bet that would change in a heartbeat with shared plans. We want to feel like we're paying for a certain allotment of data, and that we can use it as we need. That's not too much to ask, and the long-term loyalty benefits to carriers would be huge. Announcing a shared data plan as described would net carriers far more customers than the next Android phone hitting the shelves. They might move some tablets, too.

Of interest:

• TechRepublic: Android 4.0: Eight new features that actually matter
• CNET Asia’s review of Samsung Galaxy Nexus and top five features
• CNET’s first impressions
• Top 10 features in Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
• Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich is enchanting, easy, and makes you feel special
• Unwrapping Google Ice Cream Sandwich 4.0 (photos)