How about a Texting Add-On?

[pm-smayer97]

I really appreciate Public's effort to make pricing more attractive, as they have decreased the price for several add-ons, such as the 1GB add-on for $15, the 200MB add-on for $5, and the 500 mins add-on for $5.

What is still missing from the mix of offerings is a texting add-on. We are not big texting users but the smaller PM plan offer only 50 texts with no ability to expanded on an as-needed basis.

So, how about a 500 or 1000 texts add-on for say $5 or 8$? Something reasonable to be able to expand usage for the occasional need.

@Catherine_T  How about such a consideration?

[sa7375]

@pm-smayer97 

You said it so well "That is one reason why PM exists and fills the need of low-cost occasional users." ❤️

[totalUser]

I wish we could make our own plan.

Take base unlimited / limited (100 out unlimited in)/ incoming only that would determine the data autopay bonus. 15/10/5

Texting on or off 5/0

Data $5/1G that expire each reasonable max

Add-ons minutes data and texts that don't expire

[sa7375]

The difference, as you well know, is that the add-on never expires. So if I use 50 extra texts from an Add-on this month, the remaining 950 texts will roll-over to the next month —  and the roll-over continues till the limit is reached. On the contrary, the monthly packages do not offer the same flexibility, 

@ShawnC13  @pm-smayer97 

[BearFBI]

@ShawnC13 Ah. I never noticed the 30$ data plan dissappear. Thanks for the info !

[pm-smayer97]

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@Anonymous wrote:

$15 is too rich for me for that service.

It's akin to the old $30 data add-on. It was better value than the 200MB add-on in comparison but it was too much of an investment for my usage.

I like $5/500. Just like the minutes. Heck...make it only Canada-wide...not international. Heck...make it just province-wide like the old talk plans where you can do all the texting you want in the province you're in but not to another province. Heck...also offer $10/500 Canada-wide. But I'm not sure I'd pay that if they didn't have the lesser option like the 1gb/200mb.

The wish list goes on.

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ANY ONE of those variations on texting add-ons would be quite reasonable.

@Catherine_T   So how about considering filling in that gap? I suspect many would take advantage of that.

[Anonymous]

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@pm-smayer97 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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How does MMS work without data?

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I dunno. Ask sheytoon. It just does. Like with the obsolete $10 plan that had no data included. Turn on cell data and it can send and receive MMS.

If you live somewhere short of nowhere then wifi is practically everywhere. If you can refrain from the temptation of needing to google that factoid right now and wait for a free public wifi connection...wifi is everywhere.

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I'll look into that MMS...meanwhile I am in GTA...LOTS and LOTS of wifi...NONE (or VERY LITTLE) accessible...sure, McDonalds, Starbucks, malls, etc, but those are NOT everywhere, out and about, and our needs occasionally extend beyond the GTA...the GTA is not the centre of the universe...some of us actually get out  😉

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Say what now?! The rest of the country feels GTA-ians think they are. I'm way out west in south-central BC if that matters. I'm now in a larger urban centre. Shaw also has a lot of wifi (free during covid) too.

[pm-smayer97]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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How does MMS work without data?

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I dunno. Ask sheytoon. It just does. Like with the obsolete $10 plan that had no data included. Turn on cell data and it can send and receive MMS.

If you live somewhere short of nowhere then wifi is practically everywhere. If you can refrain from the temptation of needing to google that factoid right now and wait for a free public wifi connection...wifi is everywhere.

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I'll look into that MMS...meanwhile I am in GTA...LOTS and LOTS of wifi...NONE (or VERY LITTLE) accessible...sure, McDonalds, Starbucks, malls, etc, but those are NOT everywhere, out and about, and our needs occasionally extend beyond the GTA...the GTA is not the centre of the universe...some of us actually get out  😉

[Anonymous]

$15 is too rich for me for that service.

It's akin to the old $30 data add-on. It was better value than the 200MB add-on in comparison but it was too much of an investment for my usage.

I like $5/500. Just like the minutes. Heck...make it only Canada-wide...not international. Heck...make it just province-wide like the old talk plans where you can do all the texting you want in the province you're in but not to another province. Heck...also offer $10/500 Canada-wide. But I'm not sure I'd pay that if they didn't have the lesser option like the 1gb/200mb.

The wish list goes on.

[pm-smayer97]

BTW, Telus offers a UNLIMiTED texting add-on for only $15 for even the most basic plan. BUT even that is overkill for many of us (we also have a $10 Exclusive plan with Telus, for those who know what that is, with 100 texts...we simply do not need that much).

PM being the lower tier provider could fill that gap nicely with a nice text add-on for a nice size bundle for a small price...

I still believe it is a win-win.

We have 5 plans and had no intention of getting rid of these any time soon (at least 3-5 years...we have several kids to cycle these plans through for basic needs). But we would gladly pay a little extra to get the little extra texting we could use occasionally.

[Anonymous]

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@pm-smayer97 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@pm-smayer97 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I agree that it would only benefit a few...

So? You can argue that with ANY of the add-ons...

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@Anonymous wrote:
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So with TOIP or email to text or MMS...there are workarounds.

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Those work-arounds require data ... no data, no work-around.

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First of all, I'm not arguing. I have asked for it on multiple occasions too.

The first two suggested workarounds require _internet_...ie. wifi. The last one doesn't need any data present on the account. It just needs to be on.

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wifi is not everywhere...text is (wherever there is cell service)...

How does MMS work without data?

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I dunno. Ask sheytoon. It just does. Like with the obsolete $10 plan that had no data included. Turn on cell data and it can send and receive MMS.

If you live somewhere short of nowhere then wifi is practically everywhere. If you can refrain from the temptation of needing to google that factoid right now and wait for a free public wifi connection...wifi is everywhere.

[pm-smayer97]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@pm-smayer97 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I agree that it would only benefit a few...

So? You can argue that with ANY of the add-ons...

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@Anonymous wrote:
....

So with TOIP or email to text or MMS...there are workarounds.

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Those work-arounds require data ... no data, no work-around.

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First of all, I'm not arguing. I have asked for it on multiple occasions too.

The first two suggested workarounds require _internet_...ie. wifi. The last one doesn't need any data present on the account. It just needs to be on.

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wifi is not everywhere...text is (wherever there is cell service)...

How does MMS work without data?

[Anonymous]

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@pm-smayer97 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I agree that it would only benefit a few...

So? You can argue that with ANY of the add-ons...

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@Anonymous wrote:
....

So with TOIP or email to text or MMS...there are workarounds.

---

Those work-arounds require data ... no data, no work-around.

---

First of all, I'm not arguing. I have asked for it on multiple occasions too.

The first two suggested workarounds require _internet_...ie. wifi. The last one doesn't need any data present on the account. It just needs to be on.

[Anonymous]

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@pm-smayer97 wrote:

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@yanzhiqiang wrote:

$15 every 30 day plan will be the best for you.

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if it was, I would not be asking for the texting add-on...and others wouldn't be asking too.

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Yup. I would totally do a $5 for 500 text add-on that behaves like all Canadian add-ons here. Sounds just like the talk add-on doesn't it. Oh the marketing symmetry.

Never gonna happen. Asked for time and again. But hey with a new person at the helm maybe things will happen.

[pm-smayer97]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I agree that it would only benefit a few...

So? You can argue that with ANY of the add-ons...

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@Anonymous wrote:
....

So with TOIP or email to text or MMS...there are workarounds.

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Those work-arounds require data ... no data, no work-around.

[pm-smayer97]

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@yanzhiqiang wrote:

$15 every 30 day plan will be the best for you.

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if it was, I would not be asking for the texting add-on...and others wouldn't be asking too.

[pm-smayer97]

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@Korth wrote:
...I totally support the idea of a cheap Text add-on to match the cheap Canada-wide Talk add-on ... but it's been suggested and discussed before so PM is certainly aware of the demand yet PM has simply not chosen to sell the add-on, so I seriously doubt it will ever happen.

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It has been asked for a long time to offer a lower price data add-on and many did not believe it would happen. It has been asked for the price of the 200MB to be dropped and they responded. Many requested more minutes add-on for less and after a long time they obliged with the $5/500 mins.

So like you said "... it never hurts to ask ... "

[Anonymous]

I agree that it would only benefit a few still grandfathered plan holders. I have also said this on many occasions and most recently for a bit of a laugh in Catherine_T's recent announcement thread.

It's never going to happen unless they were to bring back the one limited text plan. Or a truly, a la carte plan builder that didn't penalize the customer for choosing one or two of the three kinds of services offered. Rather than how it was with it being the same price for one service as it would be for 3. The ol' bundling conundrum. Sure make it a little less for multiple services but not equal or less than the lesser quantities of services.

So with TOIP or email to text or MMS...there are workarounds.

[mimmo]

As for the texting addon,  I believe PM would rather people move to the $15 plan rather than make an addon which is needed for a single grandfathered plan.   if teh plan is does not fit the need time to upgrade.

Even the reduction in price of the 250mb addon is really silly, it should just be retired..  not sure why anyone woudl buy that then the 1gb offers more gb/$ or when early renewals are an option.  would be a different story if the addons expired on plan renewal.

[mimmo]

@gblackma  it was sometime last week,  the plan was retired quietly with no announcement.  people on teh plan keep it unless they change plan or unless their plan goes into suspended (not sure how true the last part is, reality vs theory)

[kselmak]

You are right @SomeFriend I really want it back

10 is the only plan that can truly compete with pay as you go plans

[gblackma]

@ShawnC13  when did the data only plan disappear? Thanks. 

[ShawnC13]

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@BearFBI wrote:

Another change that would be great is the data only plan price. Who would pay 30$ a month for 1GB of data. I wish we had a plan builder but only for data or at least a cheap plan to pick as a base then add data addons to it. 

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@BearFBI  there no longer is a data-only plan.

[yanzhiqiang]

$15 every 30 day plan will be the best for you.

[Korth]

The $15 plan offers 100 minutes outgoing, unlimited incoming, unlimited text, a little data.

Yes, it costs $5 more each month. Instead of one-time add-on purchases which remain until consumed. But $5/month isn't a lot and it gives a lot. The price difference is insignificant after Rewards.

Alas, I suspect PM is disinclined to offer any text add-ons. Subscribers who "occasionally" want/need to enjoy increased text provisions are just expected to upgrade their plan - the catch is that they'd then be unable to retrograde back to even cheaper plans because the cheaper plans are no longer offered. I totally support the idea of a cheap Text add-on to match the cheap Canada-wide Talk add-on ... and it never hurts to ask ... but it's been suggested and discussed before so PM is certainly aware of the demand yet PM has simply not chosen to sell the add-on, so I seriously doubt it will ever happen.

[popping]

I  have a $10 50/50 plan and I seldom go over 50 minutes and 50 texts every 30 days.

I still have not used a single minutes from the Christmas PM gift - 400 international add-on.  My family members are using WhatsApp to communicate to each other.  I don't need text add-on.  But I don't mind PM offer the text add-on just in case my need changes in the future.

[BearFBI]

@SomeFriend If they bring it back they will probably bring it back with more value. They might even turn the 15$ plan into the 10$ plan. 

Another change that would be great is the data only plan price. Who would pay 30$ a month for 1GB of data. I wish we had a plan builder but only for data or at least a cheap plan to pick as a base then add data addons to it. 

The 35$ pan should be dropped to 30$ and the 25$ to 20$. This might sound extreme but if you break down the 25$ plan PM charges 15$ for that 1GB of data and 10$ for the talk and text. Really 15$ For a GB. Its not even an addon so it dosent roll over. Taking 5$ off of that sounds reasonable. Canadian wireless is supposed to get cheaper in a couple of years so I can see them considering doing this.

[SomeFriend]

A texting addon would be amazing for the people on the $10 50/50 plan.

they should rally bring back the $10 50/50 plan as well!  🙂

[pm-smayer97]

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@kselmak wrote:

@pm-smayer97  I think you will not see it happen unless they start offering a plan without texts include.

At this point it would look like offering voicemail add-on when all the plans include it. (I don't know maybe there are legacy plans without voicemail)

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there are "legacy" plans that would benefit, e.g. the $10 50/50 plan for example. 

P.S. We have 5 of these plans in our family alone. And I know it was a VERY popular plan. I personally signed up MANY people on that plan.

[pm-smayer97]

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@ShawnC13 wrote:

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So if there is an add-on for that additional cost why wouldn't you just get the $15 plan with unlimited incoming calling and unlimited texted as well as a small portion of data

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For the same argument as to why not upgrade plans to get the extra minutes or data...

Because like the way all add-ons are designed, they are for the occasional user...that does not need that much each and every month. I have many people in my family and circles that could benefit with an extra 100-200 or so texts per month but do not need all the other stuff.

$5 or $8 every few months to fit the gap is all many of us would need and do not need the extra cost of an upgraded plan. I see this as a win-win...PM gets a bit more revenue and users get a bit more functionality, for the occasional users.

That is one reason why PM exists and fills the need of low-cost occasional users.

P.S. Also, moving to the $15 plan you sacrifice access to LTE data add-ons.

Also as mentioned, unused portions of add-ons never expire.

[kselmak]

@pm-smayer97  I think you will not see it happen unless they start offering a plan without texts include.

At this point it would look like offering voicemail add-on when all the plans include it. (I don't know maybe there are legacy plans without voicemail)