Major Mobile Carriers Phase Out Unlimited Plans

Over the past month, major mobile carriers have stopped offering new subscriptions to unlimited mobile data plans, according to a report by Kommersant. These unlimited plans have been moved to the archive by MTS, Yota, and Tele2. VimpelCom has removed unlimited options from its corporate plans, while MegaFon has discontinued unlimited in-network calls.

Representatives from Skartel (the Yota brand) told the publication that after analyzing user traffic, they found that most subscribers use no more than 30 GB per month. Tele2 also believes that unlimited plans are only in demand among a small segment of their audience. VimpelCom explained their decision as a measure to ensure sufficient network capacity and maintain service quality.

On March 28, the Ministry of Digital Development recommended “eliminating unlimited consumption” to help balance subscriber data usage. According to Telecom Daily, mobile data traffic increased by 31% last year, and now carriers are unable to expand capacity due to uncertainty with equipment supplies.

One source noted that the issue is not only about network load: this year, carriers will lose revenue from international roaming services, but domestic call volumes are expected to rise, as Russians are likely to vacation within the country. As a result, carriers may also limit or reduce unlimited in-network calling options.