Crown-owned telco SaskTel has launched Lüm Mobile, a fully digital mobile brand that’s more affordable than one with a full-service model.
With its launch, SaskTel now has a flanker brand with more affordable mobile plans similar to Bell’s Virgin Mobile and Rogers‘ Fido.
Lüm’s self-serve business model lets customers modify their service through a mobile app on their own at any time. There are no contracts, monthly plans, or monthly billing dates. Instead, subscribers purchase a membership and then buy data as needed. Data can be acquired on a pay-per-use basis and will never expire. The service is provided over the full range of SaskTel’s networks.
A Lüm membership costs CA$50 for three months or CA$180 for a year. Once enrolled, customers can purchase one of four data buckets, ranging from CA$15 for 2GB, to CA$80 for 25GB. The service also offers unlimited talk and text for CA$25 for three months or CA$75 for a year, as well as roaming data for CA$15 per gigabyte in the U.S. and CA$30 per gigabyte in Mexico.
| Membership fee | $50 for three months / $180 per year |
| Data cost | $15 for 2GB; $30 for 6GB; $55 for 14GB; $80 for 25GB |
| Talk and text (optional) | $25 for three months / $75 per year |
| Travel data | U.S.: 1GB for $15
Mexico: 1GB for $30 |
| Devices | N/A, bring your own device (BYOD) |
| Extras | Call forwarding, call waiting, three-way calling. |
The launch of Lüm appears to be a response to the CRTC’s low-cost mobile plan guideline for Canada’s incumbent telecom operators. In its advisory, the CRTC described a CA$35 per month plan that includes unlimited Canada-wide calling, unlimited text messaging, and 3GB of data per month. Additionally, it set guidelines around a pre-paid occasional calling plan without data for CA$100 a year. Although Lüm’s service fees on their own appear to satisfy those criteria, adding on the membership fee increases the prices beyond the CRTC’s recommendations.
Lüm is currently only available in Saskatchewan. Customers must bring their own devices.