Telus is raising the price of its SIM cards by $5 to $15 each, affecting all sizes and varieties. With the industry moving towards a more bring-your-own-device centred model, an increasing number of Canadians are choosing to purchase their phones outright and simply purchase service from a national carrier or its subsidiary. By increasing the cost of SIM cards to $15, Telus is earning slightly more money up front from those who want to forgo the cost of a subsidized phone.
Bell and Rogers have yet to follow suit — they both still charge just below $10 — while flanker brands like Virgin Mobile charge between $5 and $10. Public Mobile, Telus’s newly-relaunched SIM-only brand, offers SIM cards for free.
It’s unclear when the price increase will go into effect, but if you hurry you may be able to catch the last remaining SIM cards at $10.
Update: According to sources, Telus’s price increase will go into effect starting Monday, October 5th. And as some commenters point out, Telus doesn’t charge an activation fee for its devices, whereas Rogers and Bell intermittently charge $20 and $15 respectively.
Update – October 5th: As expected, the new prices for Telus SIM cards are now live.
[source]Telus[/source]
