AT&T bets big on new tactic to keep customers from switching

AT&T is continuing to spot a concerning signifier of lawsuit behaviour amid tougher contention from its apical rivals. As a result, the telephone bearer is betting large connected a bold strategy to clasp its customers.

In its latest net report, AT&T revealed that it added 421,000 caller postpaid telephone customers successful the 4th fourth of 2025.

However, its postpaid telephone churn, the complaint of customers who disconnected their telephone service, reached 0.98%, reflecting an summation of 13 ground points, compared to the aforesaid clip play successful 2024.

AT&T besides appears to beryllium facing headwinds successful its prepaid wireless business. During the quarter, it mislaid 255,000 prepaid telephone customers, pushing its churn successful the conception to 2.89%, an summation of 16 ground points twelvemonth implicit year.

The accrued nonaccomplishment of loyal telephone customers comes aft AT&T decreased its autopay discount successful April past twelvemonth for customers who wage their monthly measure with a debit paper from $10 to $5. It besides wholly removed that discount for customers who wage with a recognition card.

AT&T besides faced crisp disapproval past twelvemonth for allegedly astonishing customers with higher-than-expected monthly bills aft getting them to power from rival telephone carriers with the committedness of generous discounts.

In December, AT&T besides raised its Administrative & Regulatory Cost Recovery interest from $3.49 to $3.99 per line, a complaint that telephone customers wage connected their monthly bills.

These pricing changes were risky for AT&T arsenic much of its customers crossed the state are considering switching telephone carriers arsenic they turn sick of precocious monthly bills, a survey from Market Force Information recovered past year.

• Approximately 65% of consumers usage telephone services from the "Big 3" carriers: Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T, spending over $100 per period connected their wireless services.

• On average, AT&T customers pay astir $153 per period for service.

• About 34% of AT&T customers are considering switching to different bearer in the adjacent twelvemonth oregon two, citing amended pricing, promotions and sum arsenic the superior reasons.

• AT&T scored 32.8% successful wide marque show crossed lawsuit acquisition metrics.

• Smaller wireless carriers specified arsenic Consumer Cellular and Mint Mobile scored 73% and 65.8%, respectively.
  Source: Market Force Information

"There's a wide displacement successful the marketplace towards smaller, much agile wireless carriers who are delivering superior lawsuit experiences," said David Murray, elder manager of lawsuit strategy astatine Market Force Information, successful a property release.

During an net telephone connected Jan. 28, AT&T CEO John Stankey said that determination has been a batch of “switching enactment that's occurring betwixt competitors.”

“Are determination macro factors that are slowing incremental caller entrants into the accepted postpaid voice? Certainly, determination is immoderate facet to that,” helium said.

Despite AT&T facing headwinds from this user trend, the institution is assured successful its strategy to trim its postpaid telephone churn by continuing to beforehand offers that bundle its telephone and net services, a maneuver that has truthful acold been successful.

“We estimation that our stock of postpaid telephone subscribers is 10 percent points higher successful areas wherever we connection fibre than successful areas wherever we don't,” said Stankey. “The powerfulness of our converged offers is evident crossed our business.”

This is simply a determination that has worked for cablegram companies specified arsenic Spectrum and Comcast, which person really been luring telephone customers distant from AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile with bundled phone, net and TV work promotions.

Related: AT&T to motorboat caller work for customers arsenic it takes connected T-Mobile

For example, during the archetypal 4th of 2025, Spectrum, Comcast and Altice USA added 886,000 caller telephone customers, up from the 804,000 they added during the aforesaid 4th successful 2024, according to information from MoffettNathanson, which was shared by Light Reading.

Tying telephone and net services tin beryllium particularly beneficial for AT&T, arsenic the determination comes amid accrued request for its fibre and 5G location net services. During the 4th quarter, the telephone bearer added 283,000 caller AT&T Fiber customers and 221,000 AT&T Internet Air (its 5G location internet) customers.

The accelerated influx of net customers reflects a increasing inclination successful which consumers are ironically cutting the cord connected net work provided by cablegram companies arsenic they look higher monthly bills, starring them to research net options from telephone carriers.

This displacement successful user behaviour has contributed to Spectrum losing 109,000 net customers during the 3rd 4th of 2025, portion Comcast mislaid 104,000.

As this inclination gains momentum, AT&T expects its wireless gross to turn implicit clip arsenic it continues to grow its fibre and 5G location net footprint and treble down connected bundled telephone and net offers.

“We expect full wireless work gross maturation successful the 2% to 3% scope annually implicit the adjacent 3 years,” said AT&T Chief Financial Officer Pascal Desroches during the net call. “The superior operator of this outlook is maturation successful user and lawsuit relationships arsenic we proceed to summation wireless subscriber stock done convergence successful areas wherever we connection fibre and fixed wireless Internet services.”

AT&T plans to grow its fibre net footprint by 5 cardinal locations annually done the extremity of this decade.

“We expect this to thrust accelerated enlargement of our accidental to merchantability fibre and 5G together, to some households and businesses astatine unmatched scale,” said Stankey during the call.

While AT&T has precocious hopes that bundling telephone and net services volition trim churn, RTMNexus CEO Dominick Miserandino believes that it is lone a short-term solution successful a highly competitory environment.

“Bundling telephone and net tin perfectly dilatory churn successful the abbreviated word due to the fact that it raises the friction to leave,” said Miserandino successful a connection to TheStreet. “You are nary longer switching 1 service, you are unwinding a relationship. The hazard is that customers are progressively savvy and person much options than ever.”

More Telecom News:

• Verizon cracks down connected net customers violating cardinal rule

• DirecTV makes harsh determination arsenic customers support leaving

• AT&T to motorboat caller work for customers arsenic it takes connected T-Mobile

Also, successful an expert note, Morningstar expert Michael Hodel said that portion AT&T’s net services person fixed the telephone bearer a competitory edge, it is important for the institution to support “pricing discipline” to basal retired from its rivals.

He noted that “irrational pricing and promotion” is simply a “risk” arsenic “the signifier of the telecom manufacture changes.”

“We judge AT&T's concern successful its fibre and 5G wireless networks has strengthened its competitory position,” wrote Hodel. “These investments don't travel cheap, however. Maintaining pricing subject volition beryllium important to earning charismatic returns connected capital, but competitory strength is ratcheting up, with firms pushing to support maturation arsenic the wireless and broadband markets rapidly mature.”

Related: Verizon makes cardinal argumentation alteration to dilatory down fleeing customers

This communicative was primitively published by TheStreet connected Jan 30, 2026, wherever it archetypal appeared successful the Retail section. Add TheStreet arsenic a Preferred Source by clicking here.