Instead of seeing separate charges on your phone bill for data and voice, the services might soon be wrapped up into one data-service plan. AT&T; CEO Randall Stephenson said Friday that cell plans could be data-only within the next 24 months, so separate voice and text messaging charges could be absorbed.
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"I'll be surprised if, in the next 24 months, we don't see people in the market place with data-only plans," Stephenson said at an investor conference in New York. "I just think that's inevitable."
He didn't say AT&T; had such plans in the works, but the technology is there, and so is a new pattern of use by smartphone owners. Mobile minutes are down for AT&T;, yet texting and messaging apps continue to flourish. And, services like Skype and other VOIP clients make it easier to place calls on a mobile device using the data service.
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Check out the video above to learn more. Tell us in the comments: Do you use your mobile device's data service to place calls? Do you think mobile carriers should offer data-only plans?
Thumbnail image courtesy of iStockphoto, TommL
This story originally published on Mashable here.
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