Rogers Introduces Ultimate Unlimited Family Plans

By: RogersKatie

February 6th, 2012 a 12:10pm

By definition, a family is a group of people who are joined together – whether in a close partnership, through marriage or by co-residence. Whether you’re a family in the traditional sense, or you’re sharing an apartment with your friends, living at home with your parents or moving in with a boyfriend – you’re considered a family to us.

Starting tomorrow, Rogers is launching the Ultimate Unlimited Family Plan allowing you to limitlessly chat with your best friends about upcoming plans, give your daughter endless local minutes to gossip about the Bachelor or let your husband send unlimited messages to the boys about the game.

While Rogers has had Family Plans for some time, what’s new is that now you have truly unlimited local talk and extreme text messaging so you never have to worry about going over your minutes or minimizing your hour-long text sessions. With everyone on this plan, every month, you will receive one bill for your whole family that helps make managing the family wireless bills a little easier.

The Ultimate Unlimited Family plan starts at $95.94 per month for two lines including unlimited voice and messaging or $140.94 per month for two lines including unlimited voice, unlimited messaging, and 2GB of shared data. You can add additional lines to your unlimited voice and messaging plan for just $27.97 per line per month and to your unlimited voice, messaging and data plan for $37.97 per line per month. With these family plans you’ll receive great unlimited features including:

Unlimited local talk
Unlimited Extreme Text Messaging
Unlimited Canadian-wide calling between plan members
Unlimited Canadian-wide calling from your computer (new and only from Rogers!)

With the voice and data plan option, your plan members will share 2GB of data with the option to increase this for just $10 a month for an additional 1GB of data. You can also add-on unlimited Canadian-wide long distance for $10 per line per month. Both this option and unlimited Canadian-wide calling from your computer is available for you to stay connected with family members located outside of your local calling area.

As always, Rogers offers you a wide selection of the latest and greatest devices for every member of your family and when you’re purchasing one eligible device you can get up to 4 more at $0 each with a 3-year term Ultimate Unlimited Family Plan. This offer includes some of the hottest devices including the Samsung Galaxy S II LTE, Motorola RAZR, HTC Raider, Nokia Lumia 710 and many more. All Rogers customers also gain value from many included Rogers services such as Rogers Phone Finder and the Handset Protection Guarantee Program.

What unlimited feature would you use the most in your family?

Katie is a regular contributor to RedBoard

Rating: 2.0/5 (43 votes cast)

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Customer experience, news, trends, Wireless

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62 Comments

brdz says: February 6th, 2012 a 1:10pm

This is a terrible plan. Rogers are you trolling us?
Nick says: February 6th, 2012 a 1:21pm

Is this related to Rogers One Number service in any way? Any fine print? Is this truly unlimited minutes within your local area to local #’s? I find this hard to believe especially when I work at a store and as usual customers are notified prior to us.
- RogersNicolas says: February 6th, 2012 a 8:43pm
  
  Hi Nick,
  Yes, It is: Unlimited local talk, unlimited Extreme Text Messaging and unlimited Canadian-wide calling between plan members.
  The Unlimited Canadian-wide calling from your computer is enabled by Rogers One Number.
  - Nick says: February 7th, 2012 a 11:29am
    
    Is it also Unlimited Talk to other numbers outside of the Family?
    - RogersNicolas says: February 7th, 2012 a 7:33pm
      
      Unlimited local talk towards any local number and unlimited Canadian-wide calling between plan members.
Tammy says: February 6th, 2012 a 1:26pm

I don’t want any of your phones because I had a bunch of unlocked high end smartphone already. I don’t want any contracts…. If I were to join the plan, am I still require to be locked in for 3 years?
- RogersNicolas says: February 6th, 2012 a 8:46pm
  
  Hi Tammy,
  You can go onto the plan without a commitment if you don’t get a subsidized device.
Alex Perrier says: February 6th, 2012 a 1:31pm

This is actually quite a good deal for people who don’t want Internet access! i know someone who pays in the ballpark of $45/month, but to have their family on this plan instead would be great, because they wouldn’t have to worry about overages!

i’ve heard this requires a three-year contract. Is that true? If so, that is disappointing. Hopefully the three-year contract is optional!

Lots of good firsts here. Truly unlimited talk and text on one of the Big 3, and free Canadian VoIP. Looking forward to see how the others will compete!

But to answer your question:
“What unlimited feature would you use the most in your family?”
This would probably be unlimited Internet, even if there were fair use policies.

Can “unlimited BlackBerry” and other Internet add-ons be added to the Family Plan?
- RogersNicolas says: February 8th, 2012 a 5:07pm
  
  Hi Alex,
  
  On a per telephone number basis all add-ons are available and you can add shared data on the Family Plan itself.
Al says: February 6th, 2012 a 1:31pm

Just awful. What the hell are you guys thinking?
Robin says: February 6th, 2012 a 1:38pm

Are the ultimate familiy plans available on a month by month plan assuming I own the two smartphones already?
- RogersNicolas says: February 6th, 2012 a 8:49pm
  
  Hi Robin,
  No device subsidy, no commitment. If you already have a phone, you can go on a month-to-month plan.
L says: February 6th, 2012 a 1:54pm

How is this a good deal? Explain.
- RogersNicolas says: February 7th, 2012 a 8:20pm
  
  Hi L,
  As explained in the article, the Unlimited Family Plan gives you unlimited local talk, unlimited Extreme Text Messaging and unlimited Canadian-wide calling between plan members.
  Also there’s more than enough data to cover the needs of most families.
Chris says: February 6th, 2012 a 4:10pm

Between my wife and myself we pay about $135 – and we each have 6GB of data. Admittedly there are more “unlimited” options in this plan versus our regular plans but who cares – I never go over those anyways. These new plans just don’t seem worth it. Wait till you have to add early evenings or whatever – the price just keeps climbing.
- Al says: February 8th, 2012 a 12:46pm
  
  Why would you need to add evenings and weekends if you already have unlimited talk time?
Lewis says: February 6th, 2012 a 4:49pm

Is this going to be restricted to only certain cities? Or available Canada-wide in all calling areas?

Does the “local-talk” follow the phone when travelling? If I’ve got a Calgary number and I travel to Edmonton, will local calling within Edmonton still be included in the default “unlimited local talk”?

With the long distance add-on, this would mean that all voice is included and unlimited? No more need for clock watching, dialling without a +1 to determine if a call is local, scrutinizing call records to determine best-choices for MY5/10, etc., etc.?

It just seems too good to be true!
- RogersNicolas says: February 7th, 2012 a 9:06pm
  
  Hi Lewis,
  
  It’s indeed available Canada wide in all calling areas. [edit] Your local area travels with you.
  - Lewis says: February 8th, 2012 a 12:55pm
    
    Let me re-phrase my question:
    
    When I travel with my phone to another city/calling area, will local calls placed within that city be considered part of the “unlimited local talk”?
    
    As in, does this follow the traditional model of: a local call is based on where the phone is, not what the phone number is?
    - RogersNicolas says: February 8th, 2012 a 2:59pm
      
      My bad, Lewis. Let me correct that: your local area travels with you. Sorry for the confusion. I’ll edit my previous comment for the sake of clarity.
HeroInHelp says: February 6th, 2012 a 6:52pm

If these promotions do pan out, then Rogers will symbolize a true human relationship between user and service. Also, the customer representatives will no longer have to shovel the marketing stink that’s been plaguing the company since its inception.
This is the first critical step towards crippling one of the capitalist machines in Canada. Hopefully, management will continue to demonstrate a need to appease rather than oppose its taxed consumers. After all, we are paying for air — and now it has more value that the company can legitimately profit from.
CDL says: February 6th, 2012 a 7:26pm

What the bell is “unlimited Canada Wide calling from my computer” I thought this was a “mobile” plan and I have to use my own hardware instead of the phone. Geez stop calling things “unlimited” and then putting limitations in place.
- RogersNicolas says: February 7th, 2012 a 9:42pm
  
  Hi CDL,
  
  This is an unlimited talk and text plan.
  http://www.rogers.com/web/content/family-plans?cm_sp=homepage-pre-_-family-plan-en-0212-_-slot2
  But rest assured that 2 gb is more than enough to cover the needs of most Canadian families.
  - Peter Hope-Tindall says: February 11th, 2012 a 12:39pm
    
    Hi RogersNicolas,
    
    In the ‘See Full Details’ section on the plan page – it says:
    
    “3 Unlimited local or Canada-wide calls (as applicable), Extreme Text/picture/video messages apply to 5 numbers or 10 numbers (as applicable) on MY5/MY10 list.”
    
    I’m assuming this isn’t really a correct restriction on the ‘Ultimate Unlimited Family Plan’?
    
    Reading everything above – it seems you are saying thee calls are unlimited local calls not just to My5 or My10 (like the ‘freedom of speech’ Rogers used to offer).
    
    Please clarify,
    
    thanks,
    
    PHT
C H says: February 6th, 2012 a 7:46pm

Holy CRAP that’s expensive!!! My wife and I pay much less for a better pair of plans (+ 6 GB data) through Rogers.
Nick says: February 6th, 2012 a 8:02pm

Once again, you give people what they want and as usual, its never enough. This is a HUGE step towards future unlimited plans. This plan is going to be great for businesses that have multiple lines and pay $200+ a month. If you have a “cheaper” plan like everyone else on this blog then clearly you never needed a true UNLIMITED plan. Stay with your plan and no need to troll.
Alph says: February 6th, 2012 a 9:48pm

Can I assume that people already on a family plan will have to pay a penalty to change their plan?
- RogersNicolas says: February 7th, 2012 a 6:23pm
  
  HI Alph,
  For current customers on Family Plans, there will be no changes, but you will have the option to migrate to the new plan if you want.
  For all questions related to your account specifics, you’d have to contact Customer Support.
David Allan says: February 6th, 2012 a 11:06pm

The government needs to do something here…

Rogers says this is an unlimited plan… but look!!!!! Limited 2GB data and no CID and VM. How can you use the word Ultimate unlimited when I see there is a limited offer in the plan itself. A true unlimited plan will be, unlimited anywhere minutes in Canada, unlimited data, CID + VM, unlimited text messages / MMS…

Do you guys need a dictionary? If so, I will be more than happy to donate one to you just to find out the meaning of unlimited mean!

This is clearly false advertisement and one that is totally misleading and the government should ban this kind of ill-strategy to trap customers. Look! Rogers, you need to rename your plan to something like unlimited plan with limited data and no CID+VM. Are you kidding?
- RogersNicolas says: February 7th, 2012 a 9:40pm
  
  Hi David,
  
  This comes as an unlimited talk and text plan, and this is how it is advertised:
  http://www.rogers.com/web/content/family-plans?cm_sp=homepage-pre-_-family-plan-en-0212-_-slot2
  
  I’m sorry you find it misleading but again all the features are straightforward and all the details of that offer can be found in the link I provided.
matt says: February 7th, 2012 a 9:50am

comments?
- RogersNicolas says: February 7th, 2012 a 9:07pm
  
  Hi Matt,
  
  What’s the question?
Andy says: February 7th, 2012 a 10:51am

Seriously, some of you internet whiners need to relax. If you don’t have the usage to justify an unlimited plan, why come here and complain. If you have an older plan that was a better deal, be happy and don’t complain. This is a pretty solid plan that is on par with most carriers plans, or probably a bit better with the unlimited aspects.

It may not be best for everyone, but it’s certainly not “expensive”…. at least by today’s unfortunate standards, lol. Would I love all plans to be cheaper, sure… but this isn’t a bad deal at all.
- dudeMonkey says: February 23rd, 2012 a 3:05pm
  
  Andy,
  
  I think the reason why people are posting that there are better plans is because they actually care about other people and want to warn them off from what an overpriced plan this is and the fact that the words Ultimate and Unlimited are improperly used to define this plan which is unlimited in certain areas but not others. To me, the word ultimate means the top, the best and this plan is far from that. Example: If this is called ultimate, what would you call the same plan but with unlimited data and CID and VM? (and please do not simply tack on those words). It’s highly misleading…
felicia says: February 7th, 2012 a 12:34pm

Are blackberrys part of the new unlimited plan?
- RogersNicolas says: February 8th, 2012 a 9:50am
  
  Hi Felicia,
  All phones can be activated under the Ultimate Unlimited Family Plan including Blackberry.
  If you refer to BBM and emails, it’ll have to come from the 2 gb data bucket, but don’t worry there’s more than enough.
Joey says: February 7th, 2012 a 6:11pm

Hi, I got 10$ and 20$ in credits from retention department on a 3 years commitment for my 2 individual plans.
If I change it for the new family plan, the CS said that I will loose all my credits.
Is there any way to keep my credits if I commit myself again for 3 years ?
Thanks for replying.
- RogersNicolas says: February 7th, 2012 a 7:30pm
  
  Hi Joey,
  Customer Support is indeed handling these questions.
Shane-Michael Lee says: February 8th, 2012 a 4:09pm

Lewis: I can easily answer the Long Distance question. Wherever you are in Canada, that becomes your local calling area for OUTBOUND calls only.

For example, if you have a Toronto number and you travel to Vancouver and call a Vancouver number, that is considered a Local Call.

On the contrary, if you receive an INCOMING call from ANYWHERE while you’re in Vancouver in the above example, that is considered Long Distance. Why? The signal has to first be routed to Toronto, where your number is assigned, and then redirected to Vancouver, where you are physically.

Hope that helps!
- Dawn Roper says: February 10th, 2012 a 2:40pm
  
  I don’t get the above. If I take my Toronto number to Vancouver and call a Vancouver number it is a local call, but ALL calls to me are considered to be long distance because “the signal has to first be routed to Toronto”. Doesn’t the signal from the call on a Toronto phone in Vancouver also have to be routed to Toronto? Either this doesn’t make sense or I utterly fail to understand how signals work.
  
  Can someone explain, please.
  - Randy says: February 11th, 2012 a 5:14pm
    
    Taken directly from here: http://www.rogers.com/web/Rogers.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=AppsAddons&category=1 where it says more info: Local Calling Areas.
    
    And really, it’s not that hard to understand. Download the maps that are provided for your area and you will get the jist of it.
    
    IMPORTANT MESSAGE REGARDING CHANGES TO YOUR LOCAL CALLING AREA
    
    Local? Long Distance?
    
    With your wireless phone, calls are defined as local or long distance based on local calling areas. Your location at the time of the call, your wireless phone number and the phone number called are all important factors in determining local calling areas and wireless long distance.
    
    INCOMING CALLING is when you receive a call on your wireless device.
    
    Your INCOMING LOCAL CALLING AREA is the area or geographic boundary 3 associated with your wireless number. All calls that you receive on your wireless device while you are physically within that area are local. All calls that you receive while physically outside of that area are long distance. The number calling you is irrelevant!
    
    OUTGOING CALLING is when you place a call on your wireless device.
    
    OUTGOING LOCAL CALLING AREA is determined by your physical location – the area you are in at any given moment. If you dial a number that is local to your physical location, then it is a local call. If you dial a number that is a long distance to your physical location, then it is a long distance call. Your wireless number is irrelevant!
    
    *Note: In the case of mobile to mobile calling , the physical location of the person you are calling is also irrelevant.
    
    Outgoing Calling Tip: If you’re not sure if a call is long distance, dial without the “1″ in front of the area code (just dial the area code and 7-digit number). Your call will be completed with an operator message telling you it’s a long distance call.