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After years of consumer frustration over the high cost of mobile service in Canada, the past month ushered in two major pricing shake ups as competition intensifies in the wireless market before back-to-school shopping season.

In June, BCE Inc., Rogers Communications Inc. and Telus Corp. all introduced unlimited data plans that throttle speeds after a user exceeds their data allotment instead of charging overage fees, the first time the largest carriers adopted the unlimited strategy that has proven popular with smaller competitors and in other markets including the U.S.

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As of last week, the Big Three had also introduced financing options so customers can pay for devices in installments over at least a two-year period with no upfront costs and zero per cent interest, reducing the amount the carriers pay in device subsidies.

“The ‘great shift’ in wireless plans marches on,” Desjardins analyst Maher Yaghi noted to clients last week, adding that certain pricing strategies “signal that competition in the Canadian wireless market is currently intense.”