As the U.S. carriers have increasingly similar services and devices available, they're all looking for something to differentiate themselves with. Verizon thinks that a rewards program is what people have been craving, so it made one — called "Verizon Up."
The premise of Verizon Up is pretty simple: pay your monthly bill, and as you spend, you earn credit that can be redeemed for rewards or experiences. Every $300 you spend on a Verizon bill (which shouldn't take long), you get one credit — that's enough for one reward. Simple enough. Each month Verizon will roll out six new rewards for you to choose from — the first round is four months of Apple Music, a 20% off voucher for JetBlue flights, and three months of HBO Now.
Most people would prefer Verizon just lowered their bill.
There are also other reward categories that you can take advantage of. You can get every-day discounts at Verizon partner retailers, pile up $10 vouchers toward your next device purchase and get access to popular event tickets. To start getting credit for your bill payments, and to check out the other small deals, you can sign up quickly from the My Verizon app.
This immediately seems like a straight shot at the ongoing T-Mobile Tuesdays offering, but with the distinct difference of the biggest deals being tied to continuing to pay Verizon. I'm sure there are plenty of people who would simply prefer their Verizon bill be lower rather than subsidizing all of these rewards ... but then again, Verizon claims this is what we were asking for.
