Total Wireless, a newly announced MVNO in the U.S., will allow customers to keep unused data after the end of a month. Exclusively through Walmart stores, the MVNO will offer three monthly, no-contract billing options—a single-line plan with unlimited voice and texts and 2.5 GB of data for US $35.00, a two-line family plan with unlimited voice and texts and 5 GB of data across both devices for US $60.00, and a four-line family plan with unlimited voice and texts and 12 GB across all devices for US $110.00 per month. None of the data included in these plans can be rolled over, but customers will be able to purchase US $10.00 “Carryover” data cards to supplement their data allotments, and that data can used during or after the end of the month in which it is purchased. While it has not yet been disclosed which operator’s network Total Wireless will run on, it is rumored that it will be Verizon’s.

Tarifica’s Take

Rollover data is a trend in developed, data-hungry markets. In the U.S., AT&T and T-Mobile have been offering packages in which subscribers can keep unused data indefinitely. However, those are on premium postpaid plans; by contrast, Total Wireless is promising non-expiring data for budget-priced, no-contract plans. This nature of this offering indicates that the MVNO believes that the appetite for data, even among relatively low-end users in the U.S., is strong enough that offering the rollover option on this basis will not only bring in some extra revenue but also have significant power to attract new customers.

In a parallel development, T-Mobile has just announced that beginning 22 March it will expand its rollover data offer, known as Data Stash, to customers of its Simple Choice prepaid plans. Qualifying customers will start out with 10 GB of LTE data, which can be added to over time. Unused data will be rolled over for up to a year, automatically, at no extra charge.