AT&T Hikes Prices
With little happening in the business world - other than the same-old,
same-old post-Xmas shopping frenzy - AT&T quietly unveiled higher prices for
its CallVantage service. According to PhonePlusmag.com, AT&T is rolling out
CallVantage Plus, which will provide nine additional phone numbers for $7.49
a month. Each number will come with their own set of features such as
call-forwarding and voice-mail. AT&T is also offering call-filtering for
$1.99 a month.
The most obvious questions are whether AT&T's consumers will cough up a few
more bucks a month for additional services, and whether rivals such as
Vonage will follow suit with price hikes of their own.
Given how AT&T and Vonage have used lower prices as the marketing tool to
attract business, AT&T's decision goes firmly against the grain. It also
demonstrates what I see as the most compelling component of IP - the ability
to easily roll out new features. Some of these services will fly while
others will fail. It is both an opportunity and a risk for service providers
but this is the real power of IP at work.
If Internet prices start to climb, it may suggest some pragmatism is coming
into play and perhaps the market is starting to go from early-stage to
early-maturity. AT&T perhaps believes there is enough demand that it can
push through prices increases without affecting growth. Given there is
suggestion CallVantage is not doing too well, it may also indicate AT&T
doesn't want or can't afford to play the growth at any cost game any longer.
