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Wireless Users Shifting Away From Contracts to Prepaid
Prepaid Now Accounts For 25% of All Customers
According to new data recently crunched by consultant Chetan Sharma, there's a notable shift among United States consumers away from two-year contract wireless plans -- and toward more cost-friendly prepaid options. According to Sharma, the top seven wireless carriers in the United States lost 52,000 postpaid customers last quarter, the first such lost in the wireless market's history. Prepaid customers have been growing 15% year over year (compared to 1% for postpaid), and now account for 25% of all wireless consumers. Sharma notes that Sprint is the beneficiary of many of these users:
quote:
In overall net-adds, Sprint bested both of its bigger rivals for the first time since Q1 2002. That was exactly a decade ago when Cingular and Nextel brands were still around, before Google IPO and before Zuckerberg enrolled into Harvard. In fact, Sprint is the only US operator that has added more than 1 million subs every quarter since Q4 2010. However, most of these net-adds are coming from prepaid and wholesale segments. If we look at the net-adds over the last 4 quarters, AT&T comes out on top by a distance. In terms of postpaid net-adds only, Verizon is the clear leader during the same time period.
This trend toward prepaid should accelerate this year as more and more MVNOs seem determined to get creative on pricing, while the nation's two largest carriers seem intent on finding new, creative ways to limit consumer choice while increasing prices.
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RR Conductor
Ridin' the rails
Premium Member
join:2002-04-02
Redwood Valley, CA

RR Conductor

Premium Member

Who is Chetan Sharma?

Who is he?

cableties
Premium Member
join:2005-01-27

cableties

Premium Member

Re: Who is Chetan Sharma?

»chetansharma.com/bio.htm

Reads like auto-credentials.

Hey, Karl, you need to rename this site, Karlbode Consultants, LLC!

25139889 (banned)
join:2011-10-25
Toledo, OH

25139889 (banned)

Member

Re: Who is Chetan Sharma?

LoL. Very true. Better yet- Karl's Blog!
Expand your moderator at work

ABC87243
@comcast.net

ABC87243

Anon

Greed!!!

Two reasons why users shifting away from Contracts to Prepaid plan
1. Bad economy
2. Greedy CEO and executives. Switching unlimited data plan to Everything Plan.

As you already know, CEO and executives will raise rate on Prepaid plan when more users switch to this plan. We are the looser no matter what
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

1 recommendation

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: Greed!!!

said by ABC87243 :

As you already know, CEO and executives will raise rate on Prepaid plan when more users switch to this plan. We are the looser no matter what.

While I'm sure that was a typo it does describe what our rectums will be once these cell companies get done with us.
Terabit
join:2008-12-19

Terabit to ABC87243

Member

to ABC87243
I switched because it made a lot of sense and freed me up from contracts. I have both pageplus and straightalk .

I save about $431 over the equivalent 24 month AT&T service. More importantly, I am able to purchase a new iPhone every single year and not be in a contract.

If I did not purchase a new phone every year, I'd save about $1K over 24 months.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: Greed!!!

said by Terabit:

I switched because it made a lot of sense and freed me up from contracts. I have both pageplus and straightalk .

I save about $431 over the equivalent 24 month AT&T service. More importantly, I am able to purchase a new iPhone every single year and not be in a contract.

If I did not purchase a new phone every year, I'd save about $1K over 24 months.

The problem with Straighttalk and others is they have limited phones. Heck I've got to drive 20 miles to get a Straighttalk phone that will actually work on Verizon's network because all our Wal-Mart will carry is phones that work on at&t and at&t only offers EDGE in my area which makes the unlimited data pretty useless.

And they have ONE phone. Overall it's bit better than my LG Ally I have( mostly ) but it's also $179. I can upgrade with Verizon in 2 weeks and get a Droid Bionic which is a 4G phone for $30 which includes the upgrade fee. So that's $149 more plus tax which brings it to $163 difference. So I'm not sure where the savings are.
amungus
Premium Member
join:2004-11-26
America

amungus

Premium Member

Re: Greed!!!

I find this part of their service (and other prepaid) very curious - how do they decide who gets what type of service??

CDMA has FAR better coverage here, but how would I know what ST uses here without checking each phone etc?

Device compatibility is a huge mess.
CDMA phones should work with any compatible carrier - there's no reason Verizon, Sprint, U.S. Cellular can't all "get along" - they already do. GSM is obviously a little different - plop a SIM card in, and you're good.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: Greed!!!

said by amungus:

I find this part of their service (and other prepaid) very curious - how do they decide who gets what type of service??

CDMA has FAR better coverage here, but how would I know what ST uses here without checking each phone etc?

Device compatibility is a huge mess.
CDMA phones should work with any compatible carrier - there's no reason Verizon, Sprint, U.S. Cellular can't all "get along" - they already do. GSM is obviously a little different - plop a SIM card in, and you're good.

Verizon and Sprint use difference frequencies.

If you look at the name for most basic phones they will end in a -G or -C. The G stand for GSM and the C stands for CDMA. As to which CDMA is uses then you have to delve in a bit deeper.

On the smartphones I know they work on Verizon because they have this underneath the phone description

sandman_1
join:2011-04-23
11111

sandman_1

Member

Re: Greed!!!

Yes they do use different frequencies but they do have roaming agreements and the ability to roam on the other carrier if need be especially in Sprint's case. The phone should work on the other carrier because of that fact and the reason why carriers won't allow it is that they want you to buy a new phone with them. Mo' money mo' money...

Case in point, I was with Sprint and have a EVO 3D. Took the EVO 3D to Cricket and they flashed it to their network. It works just fine: 3G, MMS, SMS, so on. Matter of fact, the phone works better than when I was with Sprint! It doesn't randomly reboot or crash anymore and the battery life is worlds better. The only thing that doesn't work is WiMax, which is to be expected.

I get great coverage for my area with Cricket and the 3G speeds have been great, sometimes 2Mbps+. At $55/month for unlimited talk, text, and data, you can't beat it. We have saved ourselves hundreds of dollars a year just going prepaid. Plus it feels good not being tied down to a 2yr. contract with exorbitant ETF's!!
25139889 (banned)
join:2011-10-25
Toledo, OH

25139889 (banned) to 88615298

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to 88615298
ST has a sticker also on their packaging that states the network. It reads something like XXXX-A XXXX-V XXXX-S

That is how WM showed me how to read the packages.

jchambers28
Premium Member
join:2007-05-12
Peculiar, MO

jchambers28 to 88615298

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to 88615298
just get a straight talk sim and a AT&T or Tmobile phone and your set.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: Greed!!!

said by jchambers28:

just get a straight talk sim and a AT&T or Tmobile phone and your set.

T-Mobile service does not exist in my area and at&t offers only EDGE. So what would be the point?

jchambers28
Premium Member
join:2007-05-12
Peculiar, MO

jchambers28

Premium Member

Re: Greed!!!

U said straight talk offers a limited amount of phones. I was letting you know about their sim card offering that this in no longer the case. In your area it would be pointless.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: Greed!!!

said by jchambers28:

U said straight talk offers a limited amount of phones. I was letting you know about their sim card offering that this in no longer the case. In your area it would be pointless.

I'm know about their sim card thing. Net10 has a bring your phone thing too for GSM phones. If either offered the same thing for CDMA phones I'd might think about switching to them. No reason why they couldn't offer a program on a CDMA phone that is out of contract.
Chubbysumo
join:2009-12-01
Duluth, MN
Ubee E31U2V1
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Chubbysumo

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Re: Greed!!!

said by 88615298:

I'm know about their sim card thing. Net10 has a bring your phone thing too for GSM phones. If either offered the same thing for CDMA phones I'd might think about switching to them. No reason why they couldn't offer a program on a CDMA phone that is out of contract.

But, they do. You just have to go in and activate it on their network if you have an old one laying around...

SimbaSeven
I Void Warranties
join:2003-03-24
Billings, MT

SimbaSeven

Member

Re: Greed!!!

How? I'd love to get my Droid 2 Global (or even a D4) onto StraightTalk and have both GSM and CDMA radios work.
25139889 (banned)
join:2011-10-25
Toledo, OH

25139889 (banned)

Member

Re: Greed!!!

It won't happen on the Sprint MVNO side.

AnonFTW
@rr.com

AnonFTW to SimbaSeven

Anon

to SimbaSeven
said by SimbaSeven:

How? I'd love to get my Droid 2 Global (or even a D4) onto StraightTalk and have both GSM and CDMA radios work.

Here you go, for your D4 anyway: »forum.xda-developers.com ··· =1619563
Chubbysumo
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Duluth, MN
Ubee E31U2V1
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1 edit

Chubbysumo to SimbaSeven

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to SimbaSeven
said by SimbaSeven:

How? I'd love to get my Droid 2 Global (or even a D4) onto StraightTalk and have both GSM and CDMA radios work.

Assuming its a CDMA phone? If you look up on google and the XDA forums, there are a few ways to get CDMA phones to work on straighttalk, but its tricky. Depends on whether its worth your time or not. I am lucky, as I simply dumped a sim into my GSM Iphone, but I have to say, im a little depressed about their T&C. It implicitly states in the "prohibited uses" section, and I quote, "(iii) uploading, downloading or streaming of audio or video programming or games;". Then, it goes on to contradict itself, with this: "This means, by way of example only, that checking email, surfing the Internet, downloading legally acquired songs, and/or visiting corporate intranets is permitted, but downloading movies using P2P file sharing services and/or redirecting television signals for viewing on laptops is prohibited. A person engaged in prohibited uses may have his/her service terminated without notice or a refund."

tell me that makes no sense to you as well. First it says you cannot download or stream anything, then it says you can? what the hell have people been disconnected for.

Edit: after doing a little googling, it seems that straighttalk now throttles you instead of cutting you off(on GSM), but they are still shady about the "limit" of the Unlimited* plan.
25139889 (banned)
join:2011-10-25
Toledo, OH

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Not always true. Sprint will NOT activate a used post paid phone on their network unless you find someone in sprint that can add the ESN to their data base. Especially if its a VZW phone. It's been discussed before about VM customers NOT being able to use Sprint branded phones on the VM side- as Sprint maintains 2+ data bases.

PGHammer
join:2003-06-09
Accokeek, MD

PGHammer to 88615298

Member

to 88615298
Both TRACFONE and NET10 (and the lifeline partner Safelink Wireless) resell/reuse T-Mobile GSM in this area - and coverage is a definite issue; I have *dead spots* within my own house compared to CDMA (VZW) and W-CDMA (Sprint). It's not a *phone* issue (my current phone is a SAMSUNG *candybar* GSM phone - similar in features to the NOKIA *Shorty* that is still offered by Virgin Mobile USA's prepaid plan); however, it is likely that T-M's non-prepaid/non-reseller phones are *not* GSM-only. I'm hoping to find a T-M phone that someone wants to get rid of (since my Safelink SIM card would indeed fit) so I can do a straight handset switch and compare phones heads-up.
25139889 (banned)
join:2011-10-25
Toledo, OH

25139889 (banned)

Member

Re: Greed!!!

That is hit or miss with Safelink. They have their SIMs locked to the phone it was issued to. I took my Gma's Safeline SIM and put it in another Safelink branded phone and it would NOT work. It said invalid ESN even though the replacement phone worked with its original sim. That was on the T network though.

And you do realize that TracFone, Net10, Straight Talk and Safelink are the same company right?

Cabal
Premium Member
join:2007-01-21

Cabal to 88615298

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to 88615298
said by 88615298:

T-Mobile service does not exist in my area and at&t offers only EDGE.

It sounds like the cell carriers are not your problem.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: Greed!!!

said by Cabal:

said by 88615298:

T-Mobile service does not exist in my area and at&t offers only EDGE.

It sounds like the cell carriers are not your problem.

Yeah right. Because vey shortly Verizon will be offering 4G in my area while the others lag WAY behind.

Frank
Premium Member
join:2000-11-03
somewhere

Frank to 88615298

Premium Member

to 88615298
said by 88615298:

said by Terabit:

I switched because it made a lot of sense and freed me up from contracts. I have both pageplus and straightalk .

I save about $431 over the equivalent 24 month AT&T service. More importantly, I am able to purchase a new iPhone every single year and not be in a contract.

If I did not purchase a new phone every year, I'd save about $1K over 24 months.

The problem with Straighttalk and others is they have limited phones. Heck I've got to drive 20 miles to get a Straighttalk phone that will actually work on Verizon's network because all our Wal-Mart will carry is phones that work on at&t and at&t only offers EDGE in my area which makes the unlimited data pretty useless.

And they have ONE phone. Overall it's bit better than my LG Ally I have( mostly ) but it's also $179. I can upgrade with Verizon in 2 weeks and get a Droid Bionic which is a 4G phone for $30 which includes the upgrade fee. So that's $149 more plus tax which brings it to $163 difference. So I'm not sure where the savings are.

two things

1) you can order the phone from thier website and they'll ship it to you.

2) are you factoring in what you will be saving per month into figuring out where the savings are?

for example, you might be paying more for the phone now but in the long run after two years of saving like $20-$30 a month doesnt it work out in your favor?
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: Greed!!!

said by Frank:

two things

1) you can order the phone from thier website and they'll ship it to you.

I know that but I think it's so stupid that the walmart 2 miles from me only offers at&t straight talk phones and at&t doesn't even have 3G here let alone 4G. What good is unlimited data on EDGE?

2) are you factoring in what you will be saving per month into figuring out where the savings are?

for example, you might be paying more for the phone now but in the long run after two years of saving like $20-$30 a month doesnt it work out in your favor?

I'm on a family plan and my portion works out to be only $8 more per month on Verizon. I think $8 is worth the extra features on the phone and the fact I can access 4G speeds. Or will shortly when it gets here.

SimbaSeven
I Void Warranties
join:2003-03-24
Billings, MT
·StarLink

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to 88615298
said by 88615298:

The problem with Straighttalk and others is they have limited phones. Heck I've got to drive 20 miles to get a Straighttalk phone that will actually work on Verizon's network because all our Wal-Mart will carry is phones that work on at&t and at&t only offers EDGE in my area which makes the unlimited data pretty useless.

I grabbed a ST SIM for my Samsung Captivate (running CM9) and it runs great here. I'm seriously thinking of *NOT* renewing my contract with VZ.

whycontract
@qwest.net

whycontract to Terabit

Anon

to Terabit
I really don't see an advantage to being in a contract deal. From what I remember, companies used to give you a phone, in order to be sucked into 2 years of RMR for them.

With my prepaid, I bought a phone, just like most contract users do these days, but my monthly cost is much lower. I was paying 82/month for a blackberry from Tmobile - I now have a recent Android device for about 38 a month now.

After using a prepaid service for the last 90 days, and being a contract customer for about 10 years....I think Prepaid is better cause I can quit at any time if they get bought out or change their policy, it's cheaper overall, and I get the same level of service that I did as a contract member with one of the big 4 mobile providers.

Over the course of two years, I am going to save about 900 or so dollars in monthly fee's by being a prepaid customer -- I think that reason alone was enough for me to switch - Im a light user, about 100mb a month in data, 150SMS messages, and about 100-120 minutes of voice, so there is no reason for me to pay almost a hundred dollars a month for such a minimal amount of usage.

michieru
Premium Member
join:2009-07-25
Denver, CO

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to ABC87243
Point one is invalid.

If the economy was bad we would see more people flock towards post-paid plans because the cost of paying a phone up front is too steep for those who have cash in the bank.

Point 2 is valid but not quite.

Yes CEO and executives are greedy bastards morally. They own the network and can charge as much as they see fit, so they are not greedy bastards economically. So therefore we are upset morally but in the real world all that matters is gains and losses and so it's business as usual and hence therefore we cannot be mad because it's capitalism....without morals.

••••••
elray
join:2000-12-16
Santa Monica, CA

elray to ABC87243

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When cellphone service first came available to replace the horrible IMTS system, the "mobile phone for the rest of us" cost $3K-$4K for the handset, $45-90/month plus $.45-.90/minute before long distance or roaming.

It was greed that built that system, and it was greed that inspired Sprint to enter the market as a 3rd player with "PCS", then MCI and Nextel, and prices came tumbling down.

Today, we have "greed" driving America Movil and Deutsche Telecom, along with Cricket/Leap and MetroPCS, among others, and the result is a cornucopia of choice, at lower and lower prices. The exception? A few didn't properly project the "greed" of a small group of wireless data customers, many of whom intentionally overuse or saturate the service and then complain about "unlimited" terms.

I'll take "corporate greed" over socialism any day of the week.

Another article today cites Smartphone users averaging 1.4Gb monthly, clearly validating the 2GB tiers. If you use more, why are you unwilling to pay for it?

sivran
Vive Vivaldi
Premium Member
join:2003-09-15
Irving, TX

sivran to ABC87243

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to ABC87243
You forgot one: people realizing they use very little of what their plan offers, thus finding prepaid vastly more economical.

My dad used to pay nearly $40/mo to Sprint for hundreds of minutes he never even used. I got him switched over to T-Mo Prepaid and he now pays roughly the equivalent of 8 bucks a month.

mech1164
I'll Be Back
join:2001-11-19
Lodi, NJ

mech1164

Member

Nessecites

With the economy going the way it is people are reevaluating their expenses. First thing to go the phone bill. When a person does the numbers they can save a boatload by buying the phone outright and getting a better prepaid plan. If the MNVO is working well where you live then why not use them. More then likely they are using the same network you are already on. I myself don't talk alot so the $30.00 walmart plan (100min talk, unlim text and data) is a steal compared to my former $90.00+ monthly cell bill.

But to each his own. I'll take the savings thank you.

••••••••••

franknalco
join:2005-01-27
Littleton, CO

franknalco

Member

For now

Hopefully at some point technology will make the airwaves the fattest pipe around, as data speed through the ether at multi-gig speeds. Then maybe we will see wireless data become commoditized and prices fall through the floor the way they are doing in the b2b wireline data sector. Hopefully....
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: For now

said by franknalco:

Hopefully at some point technology will make the airwaves the fattest pipe around, as data speed through the ether at multi-gig speeds. Then maybe we will see wireless data become commoditized and prices fall through the floor the way they are doing in the b2b wireline data sector. Hopefully....

Do you think it cost these companies $10 per GB to deliver data NOW? If they actually charged what data was, heck charge DOUBLE actual cost, prices would be much lower.

With Verizon's new Share Your Wallet plan 1 GB cost $50, 10 GB cost $100. Somehow it costs Verizon $50 to deliver 1 GB but then another $50 to deliver 9 more GB? Does not compute. And we all know it doesn't cost Verizon anywhere near $100 to deliver 10 GB of data. If you need more than 10 GB you can purchase 2 extra GB for $10. So that's 5 per GB. And you know they are making mad profits on that. So if they are making huge profits at $5 per GB then 10 GB should be no more than $50 not $100.

franknalco
join:2005-01-27
Littleton, CO

franknalco

Member

Re: For now

Pricing is a usually a market driven force and not always a factor of margins or costs. Diamonds are found in the dirt, and sell retail for thousands of dollars, a nice mark-up if you can get it. T-shirts cost probably less than a dollar, and yet some sell for nearly $100. I used to buy a pair of jeans for $15 and am in shock to see some sell for over $200. Wireless broadband costs will come down only as a result of competition. Either more companies enter the wholesale market (which is doubtful considering the cost of entry), cost to deliver the service falls dramatically and someone hungry for market share cuts prices (read sprint or t-mobile), or there is a paradigm shift (like universal wi-fi availability for free). I personally feel that it is the second of the three (and there may be more drivers as well - like consumers turning to alternatives such as prepaid) that is the most likely. That only arises with fatter bandwidth and lower costs.

IowaCowboy
Lost in the Supermarket
Premium Member
join:2010-10-16
Springfield, MA

IowaCowboy

Premium Member

I'll stay with postpaid

I'm happy with my Verizon iPhone. Coverage is good, price is right, and I have good call quality that is comparable to a landline. Cell phone is about $118 per month (900 minutes, 250 texts, unlimited data, and 2 GB of tethering capability) and home phone (also through Verizon) is about $65 per month (unlimited local and long distance with call waiting, call forwarding, caller ID, and non published service). Home phone is necessary for alarm system and E911 capability.

•••
Chubbysumo
join:2009-12-01
Duluth, MN
Ubee E31U2V1
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Chubbysumo

Member

is it really surprising?

With postpaid prices only going up, and a number of MVNOs jumping into the prepaid market(omg, causing competition *GASP* sort of), its not wonder people are ditching postpaid and going pre-paid. Look at it this way: Post paid for an Iphone4 on AT&T runs about 90 per month with 2GB of data. Prepaid for "unlimited" data on some carriers can get as low as $40 per month. Seriously, with the economy in a slump, this really isnt a surprising shift.
axiomatic
join:2006-08-23
Tomball, TX

axiomatic

Member

Prepaid enables consumer choice.

Prepaid enables consumer choice. I think that is the most basic facet of this 25% shift.

treich
join:2006-12-12

treich

Member

Verizon/ATT/T-Mobi have this $50 prepaid unlimited setup now

you know Verizon and ATT/T-Mobile does have this $50 prepaid unlimited talk/text/web setup now just go check it out.
25139889 (banned)
join:2011-10-25
Toledo, OH

25139889 (banned)

Member

Re: Verizon/ATT/T-Mobi have this $50 prepaid unlimited setup now

Yes but VZW charges more for smartphones- TMO and others do not.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

FFH5

Premium Member

The big 4 can squeeze out MVNO's anytime

If their postpaid plans lose more & more subscribers, they will get in to the prepaid mkt big time and drive out the MVNOs. And most independent prepaid vendors buy wholesale from the major postpaid vendors. They can be squeezed out at anytime by having to pay higher prices to the big boys for their wholesale contracts. Remember, no one at all regulates those wholesale contracts.

•••
danjohn12
join:2012-05-29
20145

danjohn12

Member

i will when my contract is up

going to boostmobile want unlimited everything for 50.00 and less amonth

openupshop
join:2000-11-25
Chandler, AZ

openupshop

Member

ATT MVNO - Red Pocket

Been using my Galaxy S II on Red Pocket Mobile (AT&T MVNO) for like 6 months. No problems here.

pog4
Premium Member
join:2004-06-03
Kihei, HI

pog4

Premium Member

$55 no contract, with everything I need...

I've had Virgin Mobile here for quite a while. Sprint coverage is more than adequate. $55 gets me unlimited talk, text and data. The data is apparently throttled at some point but I have yet to pass 1GB in monthly usage anyways and have never been throttled.

I use a lot of voice (over 1500-2000 minutes most months), else I would go for a cheaper plan.

I have *never* regretted dropping my contract plan.
25139889 (banned)
join:2011-10-25
Toledo, OH

25139889 (banned)

Member

Re: $55 no contract, with everything I need...

$48 with taxes on ST using Sprint. All unlimited as well. Plus now I can roam onto VZW. VM won't roam.
Mr Matt
join:2008-01-29
Eustis, FL

Mr Matt

Member

Prepaid is significantly different than postpaid.

With prepaid unless you subscribe to unlimited service there are no free night or weekend minutes, no free mobile to mobile minutes. With many prepaid unlimited plans there are no free roaming and no service off network.

For example Consumer Cellular works like postpaid service and requires no contract. They offer a base rate of from $10.00/Mo with a charge of $0.25 per minute up to $57.00 for 2,400 minutes/month for the first handset and around $10.00 for each additional handset sharing the same bucket of minutes. No free mobile to mobile minutes so you pay two minutes per minute for calls between handsets on the same account. No roll over of unused minutes. On the plus side CC uses AT&T network and there are no roaming charges.

One has to read the fine print in order to see if the prepaid MVNO's plans will be economical for your use of your cell phone.

Check out Howard Forums they have forums for just about every cell phone provider here: »www.howardforums.com/index.php?

•••
elefante72
join:2010-12-03
East Amherst, NY

elefante72

Member

Verizon and ATT to follow

From Verizon 10-Q:
The increases in retail service ARPU (the average revenue per user per month from retail customers), and retail postpaid ARPU (the average revenue per user per month from retail postpaid customers) for the three months ended March 31, 2012 compared to the similar period in 2011 were due to a continued increase in our retail postpaid data ARPU, partially offset by a decline in our retail postpaid voice ARPU. Retail postpaid data ARPU increased as a result of continued growth in the proportion of our customer base using smartphones, which grew to 46.8% of our retail postpaid customers as of March 31, 2012 compared to 32.2% at March 31, 2011. However, both retail postpaid ARPU and retail postpaid data ARPU growth were adversely impacted by the growing proportion of our customers using internet data devices and customers optimizing the value of their data packages for these devices.

**That is Verizon speak for people got smart and started offloading their network traffic from their smartphones to their jetpacks/Wifi to avoid fee overages.

Internet data devices represented 8.3% of our retail postpaid customer base as of March 31, 2012 compared to 7.3% as of March 31, 2011. In addition, our retail postpaid voice ARPU was $31.63 during the three months ended March 31, 2012, representing a decline of $1.38, or 4.2%, compared to the similar period in 2011 primarily due to the ongoing impact of our retail customers seeking to optimize the value of our voice minute bundles.

**That is Verizon-speak for people started noticing that 450 minutes would work rather than unlimited, saving them $20-$30 per month.

Most of the press blindly walked into the moth light and compared what current plans to the new ones would cost, not paying attention that no matter what VZ would find a way to wean their subs off unlimited data onto these new plans DESIGNED for people to fall in the trap and pay for unnecessary data, or if one doesn't pay attention $15/GB if you go over..Ouch. The only way to tether "free" is to go on one of the "data trap" plans.

In fact VZ now calls out "data" ARPU in a separate line item from voice in their 10-Q. It doens't take a rocket scientist to figure out that they are going to put the zappers on data and maximize legacy voice--and hence the new consumer trap plans.

They KNOW people in family plans will fall into the "data trap", sooner rather than later.

The only way to contain costs and overages is to go prepaid with a carrier than throttles rather than hard-capping (you can still do email, etc) when you hit the limit.
alrandolph
join:2004-07-11
Jersey City, NJ

alrandolph

Member

tired of taxes

I switched from AT&T to H20 (later to ST) because I finally got tired of paying crazy taxes, just too sick of it!!!

slyphoxj
join:2002-06-23
united state

slyphoxj

Member

Been contract free for 12 1/2 years now

I got my first cell phone for Christmas of 1999- an Audiovox analog (AMPS) cell brick that came in an Airtouch prepaid phone-in-a-box kit from a local discount/variety store.

I just never could justify spending more than $15 a month and being enslaved to a 2 year contract for my little usage... just not worth it. That Sprint SERO plan for ~$38/month a few years back was tempting, but I just couldn't justify $38/month for my little usage.

And we can now have nice Android smartphones on prepaid now with a little data to boot! (I use Page Plus). I actually spend a bit more than $15/month now (closer to $30/month), but I can drop down to a lower plan and spend $12/month or less whenever I feel like it.

Oh... and I can go to another provider whenever I want without paying an early termination fee!

All of the prepaid/no-contract options available now with smartphones and data are enough to make you think twice before enslaving yourself for 2 years to a plan that you can't get out of cheaply without consequences to your credit if shit happens and you can't afford the triple digit bill anymore.
civicturbo
join:2009-11-08
USA

civicturbo

Member

iPhone on att then tmobile then H2O, all prepaid

I got an iPhone jailbroke/ unlocked it, then tried out tmobile, then Att, just told them I had a gsm phone at home I owned, AT&T store rep gave me a si. For free and put my 25 bucks on it. THEN I found H2O wireless after searching for a better deal then 10/min. Wirless Toys a retail store offered them but WT is a RIP OFF! They wanted a 40 activation and another 40 for a sim card! I went to pinzoo dot com where I've been buying prepaid airtime a little cheaper than retail and NO TAX they were and still are running a deal where you get a sim card FREE w/airtime, I spend 25/month with them for 1000 mins! I have th option to use edge data but I burns the mns too fast so I keep it turned off with a proggy called SBsettings. I also have a Clear iSpot unlimited for 25/month that I keep it my pocket for data, it rocks!
I'm very happy with this setup and I'm not getting raped like I was for the 1st month I had AT&T when the iPhone was bought, 75/mth after fck you fees and taxes on a 65/plan. That's way too much a month for just a phone.....450 mins 2GB of data that's not sharable. There's something wrong with people who spend 100/mth on a phone for personal use and think that's just OK and they support the greedy CEOs!
tmc8080
join:2004-04-24
Brooklyn, NY

tmc8080

Member

you'd think..

with all these customers who would jump ship to mvno's the other 3 (sprint, tmobile & metro pcs) would be jumping into more central state major cities and secondary cities with coverage towers. cost of building these towers are so dirt cheap because of lax safety & subcontracting... the minority carriers have NO excuse to not build and expand coverage giving you an option other than AT&T or VERIZON post paid!!

post paid is becoming sonomous with ripped off!

SomeoneYOU
@comcast.net

SomeoneYOU

Anon

Prepaid is not worth it

I would never do prepaid, i need cell service i can count on and will work anywhere i go and be reliable all the time. I have no problem being under contract and paying as much as i do for a family plan because i know im getting good service and good phones with Verizon. I find it pointless to own a phone through subpar service hell might as well not own a phone at that point.