AT&T Launches Mobile Hotspot App, Improves Tethering Plan

By Beecher Tuttle, TMCnet Contributor

In an attempt to dissuade its customers from making the move to Verizon, AT&T (News - Alert) on Wednesday announced a new WiFi connectivity offering and made some aggressive changes to its pricing model.

The carrier said that on Feb. 13, it will launch a new mobile hotspot application that will enable subscribers to connect multiple devices to the Web using their smartphones. The new service will launch alongside the HTC (News - Alert) Inspire 4G, but will soon be offered to iPhone owners as well. However, AT&T did not give a timetable on when the app will be released for their hallmark handset. 

"We are working on bringing it to the iPhone (News - Alert)," an AT&T spokesman told Computer World via e-mail. "[But we have] nothing else to share at this time."

The new mobile hotspot feature will provide users with 2 GB of data and will be bundled with AT&T's standard Data Pro plan, which offers another 2 GB itself. The bundled 4 GB plan will cost a total of $45 per month, which is in line with what other carriers charge. Customers who exceed their allotted bandwidth will be charged an additional $10 for every extra GB of data that is consumed.

Furthermore, AT&T announced that it will be modifying its tethering plan to be in line with the pricing structure of its mobile hotspot application. On Feb. 13, the company will hand out an additional 2 GB of data allowance to customers who pay $20 per month for tethering. Currently, subscribers who tether their smartphone to a separate mobile device are only offered the standard 2 GB that comes with the metered plan, meaning they are paying an additional $20 per month for the same amount of data.

"We want to extend the benefits of an additional 2 GB to smartphone customers on our tethering plan," David Christopher, chief marketing officer, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets, noted in a release. "This delivers more value today for the price they're already paying – and that's what our customers want."

Current AT&T customers who are on the tethering plan will be sent a text message on Feb. 13 to notify them of the increased data cap.

AT&T will launch these initiatives just three days after Verizon (News - Alert) brings its own iPhone to market.

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Beecher Tuttle is a TMCnet contributor. He has extensive experience writing and editing for print publications and online news websites. He has specialized in a variety of industries, including health care technology, politics and education. To read more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Tammy Wolf

(source: http://voice-quality.tmcnet.com/topics/phone-service/articles/141199-att-launches-mobile-hotspot-app-improves-tethering-plan.htm)