Can you believe it’s taken almost 30 years* for major cell phone companies to introduce unlimited calling plans? Please don’t mention cricKet or Boost Mobile, this is a serious piece.

Word has it that T-Mobile and Sprint are also on the bandwagon. AT&T seems to have the best deal so far.

We should have seen this coming when Alltel introduced “my circle,” and T-Mobile quickly followed them with “myFaves,” plans that let you call up to five numbers on any carrier as much as you want for free. In the last few weeks, Alltel upped the ante by offering up to twenty numbers, free, depending on the plan you select.

Thank God AT&T and Verizon said to hell with it and made the jump. Let the unlimited access wars begin.

punk seems to remember a bit about the reason cell phones have rate plans was related to the use of wireless channels; rate plans discouraged people from talking on their cell phones all the time, so more channels would be available in total for all subscribers in the area. Oh, and money is sweet. Please correct him if he’s wrong.

* The first commercial cellular network was established in Japan, 1979.