New Ultra Mobile feature lets users manage their own data speeds

T-Mobile MVNO Ultra Mobile launched a service that lets customers choose between three data speeds to maximize their monthly LTE usage.

Subscribers using Data My Way, as the offering is dubbed, can opt for “Super Saver,” “Optimized” or “Full Speed” transmissions based on what kind of content they want and how much data they have available. The slowest offering is designed for users with smaller data plans who use their phones for services such as accessing email; the fastest option allows customers to upload or download content with no restrictions. “Optimized” reportedly can help users reduce their data consumption by as much as 20 percent.

“For anyone who’s ever streamed a few seconds of a video on their mobile network before closing it out, chances are that much more of the video file was actually preloaded and still counted against their data plan,” said Chris Furlong, Ultra’s chief product officer, in a press release. “For the majority of people who don’t have unlimited 4G LTE data, instances like these can take a major bite out of your monthly allotment. Rather than try to upsell people, Data My Way is Ultra Mobile’s solution to help our customers get the full value of high-speed data they’re already paying for.”

Ultra Mobile offers discounted talk, text and data services on T-Mobile’s network, targeting foreign-born people living in the U.S. The MVNO claims an estimated 45 million customers, according to Crunchbase. Earlier this year the company partnered with Univision Mobile to better tap the market of Hispanic Americans.

Data My Way is available for Ultra Mobile and Univision Mobile customers. The two faster data options use 4G speeds and automatically set to Optimized, allowing customers to toggle back and forth as they wish.

Like a handful of rival players that target niche markets, Ultra Mobile has thrived as the MVNO market in the U.S. has experienced a resurgence over the last eight years. Bloomberg reported earlier this year that U.S. MVNOs roughly doubled their subscriber numbers since 2009, and Ultra’s revenue reportedly grew from $1 million in 2012 to nearly $200 million last year.