Verizon Customers on Grandfathered Unlimited Data Plans Face $20 Price Increase

Verizon customers with grandfathered unlimited data plans, which the carrier stopped offering to new customers in 2011, face a $20 increase in their monthly bill starting November 15, according to CNET. The monthly cost of unlimited data will rise from $30 to $50 as a result.

The rate increase is yet another move by Verizon to encourage customers to move from unlimited data plans to tiered data plans. Less than 1% of Verizon customers still have an unlimited data plan, according to a company spokesperson, but those remaining few are often stubborn about switching.

Verizon customers with unlimited data plans are required to pay full retail price for smartphones, although grandfathered subscribers do qualify for the company's monthly installment plan for new devices.

In the United States, Sprint and T-Mobile are the two largest nationwide carriers that continue to offer unlimited data plans. AT&T stopped offering unlimited data to new customers in 2010.