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Verizon’s “Share Everything” Plan: You’ll Pay Less or More

Last week, Verizon Wireless announced a new “Share Everything” plan, that radically changes how cell services are sold. Starting June 28, if you upgrade your phone and pay a subsidized/discounted price for it, this plan may affect you. You can also voluntarily switch to this plan.

On the positive side, Share Everything lets a family share one pot of data each month the same way they currently share a bucket of minutes. Currently each family plan member has to buy a $30 data pack for their smartphone. Also on the positive side, it appears that most people on unlimited calling plans will save money under the new scheme.

On the negative side, those folks who are looking to reduce their plan minutes for calling may be forced into unlimited calling plans for which they have no use. And they may pay more. People with multiple devices, even individuals, will be charged a fee for each device that can tap into their one pot of data.

*MOUSE PRINT:

To see how this compares with what customers are currently paying, we looked at two (of many) scenarios.

Example 1: One person with one smartphone currently with an unlimited calling plan, 1000 text messages, and 2-gigs of data.

That person pays a total of $109.99 currently (unlimited calling ($69.99), 1000 texts ($10), and 2-gigs of data ($30). Under the Share Everything plan, he or she would pay $100 (smartphone ($40) + 2-gigs of data ($60) + “free unlimited calls and texts”). That is a $10 savings a month. If that person also had a tablet, currently that would add $30 a month to their bill for an additional 2-gigs. Under the new plan, that tablet would only cost $10 extra, but not come with any additional data. If the customer wanted a total of 4-gigs of data to be shared by the smartphone and the tablet, that adds another $10. So this customer in total would save $20 a month compared to the current system.

Example 2: Three people on a family plan with two smartphones and one basic phone, sharing 700 minutes of calling, unlimited texts, and two of them having 2-gigs of data each.

That family currently pays: $169.97 (700 calling minutes ($69.98) + third phone ($9.99) + unlimited texts ($30) + 2-gigs per smartphone ($60) ). Under the new system, they would pay a total of $180.00 ( 2 smartphones ($80) + 1 basic phone ($30) + 4-gigs data to share ($70).

The bottom line is that everyone on Verizon will have to do the math to see if it is best to stick with their current plan or switch to Share Everything.

Note: MrConsumer is a member of Verizon’s Consumer Advisory Board.

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Pom (Not So) Wonderful Fights Back

The Federal Trade Commission recently sued the maker of Pom Wonderful pomegranate juice contending that it did not have reliable evidence to back up the health claims it made.

A federal administrative law judge two weeks ago ruled in favor of the FTC, issuing a cease and desist order against the company because it did not have sufficient evidence to support its claims that its juice reduced the risks of heart disease, prostate cancer and impotence. (Full decision)

Turning their defeat on its head, the company took out full page ads in the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times like this:

Reading the advertisement, you’d think that the company won the lawsuit. What they did instead was cleverly excerpt out-of-context quotes from the judge that seemingly supported their case.

Look at the first claim in the advertisement above, where the company quotes the judge as saying that scientific studies support the claim that pomegranate juice supports prostate health including by slowing the rate of increase in a man’s PSA level. What they failed to tell you was the following, that the judge said immediately after that.

*MOUSE PRINT:

“However, the greater weight of the persuasive expert testimony shows that the evidence relied upon by Respondents is not adequate to substantiate claims that the POM Products treat, prevent, or reduce the risk of prostate cancer or that they are clinically proven to do so. Indeed, the authors of the Pantuck Study and the Carducci Study each testified that their study did not conclude that POM Juice treats, prevents, or reduces the risk of prostate cancer. And, as Respondents’ expert conceded, no clinical studies, research and/or trials show definitively that the POM Products treat, prevent, or reduce the risk of prostate cancer.” — Judge D. Michael Chappell, page 282.

Looking at the company’s third claim in the ad above about promoting erectile health, the company conveniently omitted the judge’s conclusion in the very next sentence:

*MOUSE PRINT:

“There is insufficient competent and reliable scientific evidence to show that pomegranate juice prevents or reduces the risk of erectile dysfunction or has been clinically proven to do so.” – page 188

What chutzpah this company has. It will be interesting to see if the FTC goes after Pom for the deceptive nature of these misleading ads.

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