Prepaid Wireless Tracker
- March 2013 Issue #57
Hi,
Prepaid
wireless is a growing and truly exciting industry. At
Prepaid-Wireless-Guide.com I try to provide you with in-depth
information that isn't readily available anywhere else. Its
content is original, and created from firsthand experience working in
the prepaid wireless industry.
This monthly email provides you
with a quick glance at what's in the news so that you can
easily keep
informed. I believe in brief, to-the-point
summaries/commentary
so that you can move onto other tasks in your day. Each
snippet
includes a link to the original story should you be interested in the
full details.
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T-Mobile Launched New GoSmart Brand
Nationwide
Reuters
On February 19th, T-Mobile launched its new GoSmart service nationwide
after a successful two-month trial. This new brand is clearly
targeting the lower end market with its lower entry price of $30/month.
However, even its $45/month plan offers a respectable amount
of
data that rivals other prepaid carriers that started throttling users
last year. Unlike the transition from 2G to 3G where the
strategy
was
to get everyone off of 2G in favor of 3G, carriers are really
playing up the speed bundles that include 4G data up to a limit, and
then 3G kicks in. GoSmart really highlights these differences
between the available plans. I expect this is due to
providing an
incentive to upgrade to higher priced plans, as well as a means of
controlling costs as 4G is still not fully rolled out and optimized for
high traffic. T-Mobile also noted that they're trying to
serve
people who either don't need, or can't afford 4G service.
Also
note that their phone selection is limited, which further narrows its
market appeal, however, anyone with a compatible and unlocked phone can
use it on their GoSmart plans, which shows that it's targeting
potential
defectors from other carriers looking for a better deal.
Verizon Wireless Makes Changes To Prepaid
Plans - Continues To Limp Along
Verizon discontinued its $80 for 1GB in favor of two new plans: $60 for
500MB, and $70 for 2GB, both with unlimited talk and text.
While
these are less pathetic that the previous plan, they're 3G only, and
available only on select phones. As the dominant (and very
profitable) postpaid carrier, this prepaid strategy still makes sense
for Verizon. While it remains a sad alternative to other
prepaid
carriers, it continues to limp along in the prepaid space, probably to
ensure that when it starts to see postpaid sales plummeting, it can
quickly make changes to prepaid to actually get in the game.
In
other words, rather than start from scratch, they're ready to play in
the
prepaid game when the time is right. The time to compete is,
however, not now!
Virgin & Boost Mobile Offering 4G LTE
While it will continue to offer 4G WiMAX until that network is shut
down, Sprint Nextel announced a number of 4G LTE devices that will
launch on its prepaid brands. This makes a lot of sense as
WiMAX
is replaced with LTE. Given that lead time, beginning to
offer
LTE now is a logical strategy. The average customer may get
confused, however, regarding the difference between the 4G technologies
and coverage. While WiMAX has much better coverage currently,
over time the lifespan of WiMAX phones will be limited.
Hopefully
the conversion to LTE will be done in a matter than ensures appropriate
value for customers who have invested in higher end smartphones.
Offering LTE now also allows Boost and Virgin to sell the
iPhone 5,
which is the
first 4G capable iPhone. This will no doubt help
Sprint to meet its sales obligations to Apple, which it has
historically struggled with achieving.
GameStop Now Selling Net10 Prepaid Wireless
Service
Amarillo.com (blog)
GameStop
announced that it is now offering Net10 phones and service in its
stores. I suppose if you frequent these stores, it could be a
convenient topup location, however, as a new phone sales location, I
just don't get it. Customers should not feel that GameStop is
endorsing Net10 service and trust that it's the best option for them.
In other words, prospective prepaid customers should seek out
stores
that offer multiple prepaid brands in order to truly understand what
service will best meet their needs. While Net10 is a great
option,
shoppers should beware of blindly purchasing a service just because
it's
offered at a location they happen to frequent. I wish
retailers would
stick to their core competencies, and stop getting greedy trying to
get in on the prepaid wireless action!
What's
New At Prepaid-Wireless-Guide.com?
- Published new page: History Of Smartphones
- Updated T-Mobile $70 plan to unlimited 4G data on Compare
Unlimited Plans
- Removed Verizon from Prepaid Wireless Broadband Plans with
note that now only offer 4G
Comments?
Ideas? Feedback? I'd love to hear from you. Just reply to this zine and
tell me what you think!
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Wireless Tracker Back Issues.
Cheers!
PrepaidWirelessGuy
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