Verizon mobile card package is too expensive, resulting in a lower-than-expected number of Q3 wireless users and a 23% drop in profits.

Thanks to CTOnews.com netizen kkkkkkkkkayd for the clue delivery! CTOnews.com, October 21 / PRNewswire-FirstCall-Asianet /-- Verizon (Verizon), the largest mobile operator in the United States, reported a 23% drop in profit in the current quarter and a lower-than-expected number of wireless subscribers in the third quarter, as its price increases led some customers to turn to competitors AT&T and T-Mobile.

Verizon said on Friday that the number of monthly paid mobile phone users in its consumer business fell by 189000 after adding extra fees to an already expensive package in June.

The company's shares fell 6 per cent to their lowest level in more than a decade. Matt Ellis, the company's chief financial officer, said the rise in the price of insurance plans led to outages and warned that the pressure would continue into next quarter.

CTOnews.com learned that competition in the US telecom market is heating up after Verizon and AT&T announced a spin-off of their media business, and T-Mobile has completed its merger with Sprint to become a wireless-focused company.

While high spending on 5G infrastructure has pushed up costs, these companies have been forced to maintain the "affordability" of their plans as inflation problems rise and consumers' willingness to spend weakens, but Verizon's package is the most expensive in the US, with a net increase of 8000 users in the quarter, well below Factset's estimate of 35400 new users.