AT&T removed HBO from an unlimited data plan after buying Time Warner

AT&T has been offering free HBO to its unlimited data customers since 2017, and you might have expected that deal to continue unaltered now that AT&T owns HBO thanks to its acquisition of Time Warner. But AT&T revamped its two unlimited mobile plans this week, and in the process it raised the price for the entry-level plan by $5 a month while removing the free HBO perk. The entry-level unlimited plan now starts at $70 instead of $65. Existing customers can keep their old plan and the free HBO, but new customers or those who switch plans will have to buy the more expensive unlimited plan to get HBO at no added cost. AT&T did add some video options to both plans, however. Both unlimited plans get AT&T's new "WatchTV" streaming service that comes with more than 30 channels, and buyers of the more expensive unlimited plan can choose to get HBO or another premium add-on. Separately, AT&T recently raised the "administrative fee" charged to postpaid wireless customers from $0.76 to $1.99 per month, according to BTIG Research. "We believe the effective $1.23 increase per line impacts at least 85 percent of the 64.5 million postpaid phone lines in service, resulting in $800 million of incremental service revenue [per year]," the analyst firm wrote.