Of course, the devil's in the details with triple- and quad-play plans, and consumers should read the fine print carefully before signing up. A package deal may not save you money if includes a home phone you don't need, more TV channels than you want, or wireless services you never use. In addition, bundle discounts often expire after a year or two, at which point your monthly bill may rise.

Verizon's quad-play deals are targeted both at customers of its , and at those using its older copper (landline/DSL) system. The basic FiOS quad-play bundle, for instance, includes a national Verizon Wireless calling plan of 450 minutes, home phone service, Internet with a speedy 15/5Mbps downstream/upstream connection, and the FiOS TV Essentials service for $135 per month with a one-year agreement. The plans are for Verizon customers in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic U.S. markets. (Verizon Wireless is a joint venture between Verizon and .)

If quad-play bundles catch on with consumers, we'll likely see more of the same from Verizon and rest of the telco/cable pack. "The desire for quad-play has been increasing. We ask consumers what kind of bundle they want, and quad-play has been pretty high on the list," says IDC research director Matt Davis, who's studied triple- and quad-play plans for years.

Cable providers, attempting to muscle into the wireless market, have tried quad-play bundles in the past. One sputtering effort was , a joint venture between Advance/Newhouse, Comcast, Cox, Sprint, and Time Warner Cable. But it hasn't taken off, and quad-play's market penetration remains low overall.

"It's still not very big because the cable operators stalled with Pivot, and they weren't able to supplement that," says Davis. However, the cable folks haven't given up on wireless or quad-play. They're forging deals with , and has its own plans for cell phone service.