[jmciver]

IIRC, BMW uses AT&T as the service provider for the in-car WiFi. So when the free trial period is over, you need to either purchase a wireless plan from AT&T to have continued service in your BMW, or, if you are already an AT&T customer, you need to add your BMW to your existing AT&T plan - basically just like adding another cell phone line to your plan. Unlike most cell phones, where you can change the SIM chip from one carrier to another, you can't change the SIM chip in your BMW as it is hardwired - so you are stuck with AT&T if you want to have in car WiFi.

Beginning with '23 models, I believe BMW added eSIM capability which means you can use any service provider you want. But this feature can't be easily retrofitted to older models.

I have a '20 model and I am on Verizon. So once my original trial period was up, the $25/mo AT&T plan was not worth it to me. Had I been an AT&T customer at the time, I believe the cost was $10/mo, which I might have paid, but I was not going to switch carriers just for WiFi in the X7.