SUGGESTION: Need Better International Options Reciprocal Network Access

[ngm_atandt]

1. Users should be able to purchase local phone plans from partner providers from an easy to use GUI on their smart phones.

2. User should be able to browse providers by country and purchase local accounts, local numbers and data plans from partner providers.  The user should have the option to pay a small retainer fee for maintaining an overseas number that is forwarded to their main number when they are back home in the US.  There are all kinds of people that travel internationally for different periods of time so AT&T should look to offer a variety of options to accommodate them.

3. The rates should be no greater than that which one would pay if they were to purchase a local sim for an unlocked phone.

4. These local accounts should be activated virtually and from within the GUI.  There should be no need to install a physical local sim.  The physical sim and virtual sim should be assigned to one another virtually.

5. The user should be able to setup any forwarding needed and avoid paying roaming voice and data rates on their home account.

Benefits to AT&T

1. AT&T gets to resell cell phone subscriptions from overseas providers and possibly book revenue overseas.  Since subscribers that go overseas for a few weeks or months still pay their AT&T contracts, AT&T won't loose out on that revenue.  It may loose a few roamers that pay ridiculous rates but it will be reselling foreign plans in high volume to make up for that.  It may still retain high paying roamers that are overseas for less than a week.

2. Customer sat would go way up.  Customers would also be less likely to unlock or jailbreak their phone.

This could be compared to how Bank of America allows users to use ATMs from partner banks overseas and obtain local currency with no fees.  That is so long as the user goes to a partner.

3. By partnering with foreign providers to resell their network access, AT&T may be able to get the same in return.  International travelers comming to the US could activate short term AT&T contracts.

[DWC1 ACE - Professor]

It is highly doubtful that at&t will take up your suggestions.  The options you suggest will directly undermine the highly profitable roaming revenue which at&t seems to be happy to continue.   Most of the suggestions are great incentives for consumers looking to cut costs but what is the incentive to at&t?   At&t currently seems to have plenty of customers mostly on the corporate side who willingly pay the current roaming fees. 

[kasoonka]

I am thinking of switching to at&t - looking at their Nation with Canada plans. I have a few questions. The plan details say, "No long distance or roaming charges for voice calls between the U.S. and Canada." Does this also mean between Canada and the U.S.? What does the "data pay-per-use rate of $2/MB in Canada" mean exactly. "Unlimited mobile to mobile" - I understood that at&t and Bell were affiliated. Does that mean that we get unlimited mobile calls between at&t customers and Bell customers? Any help that you can give would be appreciated.

[redpoint73 ACE - Wizard]

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kasoonka wrote:

I am thinking of switching to at&t - looking at their Nation with Canada plans. I have a few questions. The plan details say, "No long distance or roaming charges for voice calls between the U.S. and Canada." Does this also mean between Canada and the U.S.? What does the "data pay-per-use rate of $2/MB in Canada" mean exactly. "Unlimited mobile to mobile" - I understood that at&t and Bell were affiliated. Does that mean that we get unlimited mobile calls between at&t customers and Bell customers? Any help that you can give would be appreciated.

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Not sure what this has to do with the topic of this thread, you would have been better off starting your own thread.

I don't see that plan, can you post a link to it, so I can look?

No roaming charges for voice calls suggests that you would not be charged while in the Canada and calling the US.  But its not clear.  If I can see the plan, I might be able to answer better.

The data rate means you get charged $2 per megabyte of data used while you are travelling in Canada.  What part is not clear?

Bell and AT&T may be affiliated, but they are not the same company.  And Canada Bell is not even the same country, so I don't think that benefit would apply.  I doubt you get free mobile to mobile with Canada Bell customers.

[wilcre ACE - Expert]

Individual Nation with Canada plans start at $59.99 for 450 minutes. FamilyTalk with Canada plans start at $89.99 for 700 minutes.

View our Affordable World Packages for customers calling and travelling to Canada.

Nation with Canada Plans

No long distance or roaming charges for voice calls between the U.S. and Canada and a data pay-per-use rate of $2/MB in Canada.

Minutes (U.S. + Canada)	Monthly Cost	Rollover® Unused, accumulated Anytime Minutes that carry over from month to month for up to 12 billing periods.	Included Nights/Weekends (U.S. + Canada) Nights are 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. Weekends are 9 p.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Monday.	Unlimited Mobile to Mobile** Unlimited calling to other AT&T wireless customers.
450	$59.99/mo.		Includes 1000		View details
900	$79.99/mo.		Includes 1000		View details
1350	$99.99/mo.		Includes 1000		View details
2000	$119.99/mo.		Includes 1000		View details
4000	$169.99/mo.		Includes 1000		View details
6000	$219.99/mo.		Includes 1000		View details

[stufried]

Note that mobile-to-mobile doesn't apply to the phone in Canada. 

[abyca]

I like your ideas.  AT&T's international roaming charges are ridiculous. For this reason, I use a separate phone for international travel. It's a small PIA in that I have to make sure anyone who may need to reach me has that phone number, but it's worth it to avoid the highway robbery roaming charges of AT&T.  Using Skype while overseas is also a good alternative.