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Unlimited plans, good service ups Boost Mobile’s subscribers

August 3rd, 2009, 11:22 am by

Boost MobileWhoa! Consumers are really beginning to pay attention to prepaid phones.

Irvine’s Boost Mobile signed up 1.65 million new customers during the three months ending June 30. After counting up subscribers it lost, Boost added  777,000 net customers during its second quarter 2009. Win some, lose some.

“That’s the highest number of net adds in three years,” Matt Carter, Boost’s president, told me as he offered an update on the health of Orange County’s prepaid mobile company.

Matt Carter, president of Boost Mobile in Irvine. Image courtesy of Boost Mobile.

Matt Carter, Boost Mobile president

Boost has had some serious competition in the prepaid mobile market, a business it entered in 2002.  Today, not only are there prepaid offerings from the traditional post-paid wireless companies, but newbies like MetroPCS and Cricket Wireless have wowed customers with their unlimited plans. Boost ended up changing its whole target customer last fall — from appealing to the young and hip to the budget conscious.

It launched one of the industry’s first $50 unlimited text and talk plans, introduced its first Boost-branded stores, and hired sexy Indy car racer Danica Patrick, who helped Boost target a new audience.  All of those efforts apparently helped. Boost’s subscribers grew 18 percent to 5 million in three months. Average monthly bill per customer? Up $3 to $34 within three months.

“We shifted from a lifestyle youth-oriented brand to value-conscious consumers. The way we look at Danica … she’s an iconic figure. You go out to the race car events and a lot of those folks who we’re trying to get are there, they shop at Wal-Mart, they shop at Best Buy. They may work for General Motors,” Carter said.

But don’t expect Boost to drop the price on its unlimited monthly plan anytime soon. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in: Cell phones • • • • • • • • • | 2 Comments »

Best prepaid phone service rankings revealed — what a turnaround!

August 3rd, 2009, 7:53 am by

J.D. Power and AssociatesA mobile phone without a contract? Ever? If you haven’t looked at the prepaid phone industry lately, you might want to look again. Customers are more satisfied then ever before, plus it’s cheaper. 

According to the latest report from J.D. Power and Associates, the customer-service ratings group, prepaid service has changed from when it targeted credit-challenged customers. Today, a good chunk of new users are refugees of traditional post-paid service.

Results in this year’s survey ranked overall prepaid wireless customer service satisfaction at 750 out of 1,000 points (based on service, reliability, cost and performance of prepaid service — the higher the score, the better). Last year, the industry scored 719 points. Meanwhile, the post-paid industry this year hovered in the high 600s.

mobilephonePrepaid’s overall winner, Net10, earned the highest mark of 10 prepaid carriers — 774 on a 1,000 point scale. But just a few points away at 771 in third place was Irvine’s Boost Mobile, which has been overhauling its mission in order to compete in the crowded market. This is a complete turnaround from last year when Boost was No. 7 and below the industry average. Net10 was nowhere to be found on the J.D. Power 2008 list. 

“NET10 differentiates itself from other companies by simplifying the wireless experience with straightforward pricing, virtually no roaming charges and robust nationwide network coverage,” Kirk Parsons, senior director of wireless services at J.D. Power and Associates, said in this year’s press release. “Users find they don’t have to worry about restrictive calling areas and can maintain their account without hassle.”

While these two companies have improved, others completely tumbled, including last year’s winner MetroPCS, which landed at the very bottom this year. The company, known for offering generous unlimited plans fumbled on customer service, performance and reliability issues and promotions. Rival cheap carrier Cricket Communications also fell to ninth place, from last year’s perch in third. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in: Cell phones • • • • • • • • • • • • • | 12 Comments »

MetroPCS mobile plans get cheaper via feature boost

July 30th, 2009, 11:00 am by

MetroPCSForget $50/month unlimited plans. MetroPCS, which prefers the all-unlimited-or-nothing approach to mobile phone service, says it can offer all that and then some for $45.

The prepaid wireless company, a growing force in the industry, announced new plans today. Actually, the prices are the same but each plan adds some features. But in another sense, some of the prices are lower. For example, the $40/month plan now includes roaming, which previously was a $5 add-on feature at this price level. So, you’re saving $5.

The adjustments to existing plans are as follows:

  • $30/month – Unlimited local call plan adds caller ID and call waiting.
  • $35/month – Unlimited local and national call plan adds caller ID and call waiting.
  • $40/month – The above plus roaming in 4,600 cities, plus unlimited text and MetroWEB, which is Internet for non-smartphones.
  • $45/month – The above plus unlimited e-mail, navigation and social networking applications.
  • $50/month – No change (above services include full Web browsing and enterprise e-mail).

You won’t find MetroPCS’ site updated yet. The new prices go into effect on August 1 (Saturday). For reference, here’s an image of the prices prior to August 2009: LINK.

More on cell-phones:


Check out the Gadgetress Guide to local cell phone services

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Boost Mobile calls rival’s $5 international plan ‘impossible’

June 26th, 2009, 4:56 pm by

Boost Mobile battles MetroPCS' new $5 international plan.If being able to call friends and family overseas anytime you feel like it for just $5 a month on your cell phone sounds unbelievable, it is, insists Irvine’s Boost Mobile.

The prepaid mobile phone provider took umbrage with rival MetroPCS, which announced such a deal on Wednesday. MetroPCS subscribers can now make unlimited calls to more than 1,000 cities worldwide with the new international plan, which is $5 per month when added to plans of $40 or more.  

“Anything can be profitable depending on the usage,” said Justin Brenan, Boost Mobile’s business director. “They’re obviously taking a bet on the usage. … They’re betting customers won’t use it very much.”

Consumers need to look closely at the details of the plan. Brenan says that calls to cell phones in Mexico aren’t included in MetroPCS’ unlimited plan, which is “a pretty big omission by MetroPCS,” he said. MetroPCS has not responded to the charge, but an attempt to see whether some Mexico-based wireless numbers on MetroPCS’ phone number lookup site qualify was negative. 

MetroPCS could be making money by forcing customers to upgrade to more expensive plans. Or it could be using inferior voice-over-internet technology, Brenan theorized. It could also be hiding fees and taxes so the $5 a month is just a minimum of what a customer pays. 

“We really have seen some seemingly impossible offers like this come from MetroPCS before and what happens is they disappear very quickly, which make it seem that it is too good to be true,” he said.

But the main reason why such pricing is impossible is settlement rates, which have been an international calling issue for years. Mobile companies in other countries charge these tax-like fees on foreign calls made to phones in their wireless network. Rates vary by country and differ from rates placed on calls to landline phones. In Boost’s case, calls to landlines in Mexico are $0.02, while calls to wireless phones are $0.10 per minute.

MetroPCS wouldn’t elaborate on how it plans to make money off the international plan. But in a statement, the company said it is profitable: “We don’t disclose pricing or profitability on individual products. However, our company is extremely profitable even with the launching of new markets and we have some of the lowest operating costs in the industry.” Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in: Cell phones • • • • • • • | 10 Comments »

Unlimited international calls for $5/month? MetroPCS says yes!

June 24th, 2009, 1:02 pm by

MetroPCSMetroPCS, the significantly cheaper mobile-phone service, unveiled a plan today offering unlimited calls to more than 1,000 cities around the world for an extra $5 a month.

The new international plan is only available to subscribers of its $40-or-higher voice plans. Users don’t need to dial an intermediary number first and can call international numbers directly. Receiving international calls is free.

However, not every international city is included, but the biggies like Vietnam and Mexico City are part of the unlimited plan. To see if an international number qualifies, MetroPCS sends customers to this page. Also, the cheap rate doesn’t apply if the user is roaming and with MetroPCS service only available in certain U.S. cities, this extra fee could add up. 

So… the big question is how does MetroPCS do it? Its mobile rivals charge up to a few dollars per minute to call some countries. While the major wireless companies do offer international plans, those all have a monthly charge and a per-minute fee, albeit discounted from the standard international rate. MetroPCS new international plan is a flat-rate service with no extra fees, unless you’re roaming outside of MetroPCS coverage areas. 

I’m waiting to hear back from the company to explain how it can offer such a low rate. UPDATE, 3:57 p.m.: MetroPCS’ responds by avoiding all specifics:   

We don’t disclose pricing or profitability on individual products. However, our company is extremely profitable even with the launching of new markets and we have some of the lowest operating cost in the industry.

Scanning through international plans from other mobile companies, I was surprised to see that it’s not that expensive to call overseas anymore. But none are as cheap as MetroPCS, which offers unlimited U.S. cellular plans for as low as $30 a month. 

For example, Verizon Wireless charges $0.65/minute for calls to Mexico. Its $3.99  monthly value plan drops the per-minute rate to $0.25. Comparably, AT&T’s rates are $0.99/minute for calls to Mexico. On the company’s special $4.99 “Mexico plan,” calls range from $0.09 to $0.25. But if you’re just calling Mexico from a MetroPCS plan, there’s already a $3 plan for unlimited calls to Mexico. 

Here’s a look at mobile international plans:

Mobile Service Monthly Per minute? To United Kingdom No plan fee per minute
AT&T World Connect $3.99 Yes 8-28 cents/minute $1.29
MetroPCS $5 No included  
Sprint $4 Yes 6-39 cents/minute $1.49-$1.82
T-Mobile $5 Yes 6-26 cents/minute $0.69
Verizon Wireless $3.99 Yes 6-26 cents/minute $1.49-$1.67
Source: AT&T, MetroPCS, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless

More on cell-phones:


Check out the Gadgetress Guide to local cell phone services

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A BlackBerry plan for $50/month?

March 10th, 2009, 11:28 am by

With more companies encroaching on its territory, MetroPCS introduced a new $50 rate plan today for its latest phone, the BlackBerry Curve 8330.

The company, which already offers some of the cheapest all-you-can-talk plans in the industry, has faced increased competition from T-Mobile and Boost Mobile, both which introduced $50 unlimited talk/text plans in the past two months.

(Read the earlier stories, “Boost Mobile adds ‘tax-free’ $50/month unlimited plan” and “Are $50 unlimited plans latest trend? T-Mobile follows Boost.“)

MetroPCS’s latest twist is that the $50 will get customers unlimited BlackBerry e-mail access, not to mention unlimited talk, texting, web browsing and MMS. No signed contract either.  For $10 more per month, users can connect to the BlackBerry enterprise server for corporate messaging.

Comparably, BlackBerry e-mail plans can add $30 more per month. More details about MetroPCS’ plan are HERE.

FierceWireless points out that MetroPCS’ plan is in direct competition with the new plan from Boost, based in Irvine. The wireless research company interviewed Matt Carter, Boost’s president, who said that Boost plans on introducing a phone with a QWERTY keyboard later this year.

Check out the Gadgetress Guide to local cell phone services. More cell-phone news:

Posted in: Cell phones • • • • • • • • • | 2 Comments »

MetroPCS’ intriguing cheap wireless service offer

December 26th, 2008, 12:40 am by

Note: This is part of a series on finding cheaper cell phone plans.

The offer sounds too good to be true, and you know what they say about that.

MetroPCS Wireless, a newish prepaid cell-phone company that began service in Orange County 15 months ago, charges $45/month for unlimited calls, texts and picture messages. And we’re not talking unlimited nights only, but unlimited anytime of day or night. There’s also no contract, so you can leave the company anytime you want. The cheapest plan is $30/month, but you only get unlimited local calls.

I had to find out more. So I spoke to Rob Wondoloski, vice president and general manager of MetroPCS Los Angeles. 

“When we enter markets, a lot of consumers ask, ‘What’s the catch?’ There is no catch,” he said. “We built this company from the ground up to be an unlimited carrier.”

Some ways they save money: Instead of a paper bill, customers get a text message each month reminding them to pay up. Also, because everything is unlimited (unlimited plans are $3/month), the company doesn’t have to come up with elaborate formulas to calculate every little charge. Don’t have a text plan? You won’t be charged for any texts you receive, but you can’t send any either. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in: Cell phones • • • • | 3 Comments »

Are prepaid phone plans for you?

December 25th, 2008, 12:40 am by

Note: This is part of a series on finding cheaper cell phone plans.

I never thought much about prepaid cell phone plans. I didn’t want to mess with phone cards or  high per-minute fees. And I wanted a cool phone that didn’t deplete my bank account.

But since my T-Mobile contract was over months ago, I decided to look at all my options. Pre-paid plans are quite attractive these days and not just because they can save oodles of money.

At prepaid carriers like Virgin Mobile, you can get started for $10 for the phone and $20 a month if you talk less than 200 minutes. Per-minute charges range from $0.10 to $0.33.  And no contracts, no early termination fees and no credit checks. But coverage areas can be limited, phone choice mediocre and, as the daughter of an OC Register Mom blogger discovered, phone cards expire. 

So why go prepaid? Consumer Reports recently explored the niche in a reader survey, finding that 76 percent chose prepaid because it cost less than a monthly plan, 70 percent went prepaid because they make calls infrequently and 47 percent said they like the no contracts. 

Consumer Reports’ conclusion: A family with 2 phones and a 700-minute plan could save $220 a year by going prepaid with Virgin Mobile. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in: Cell phones • • • • • • • • | 6 Comments »

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