PrePaid services
Cricket WIreless: A Niche Play To Serve Only The Underserved?
06/01/12 08:25
I like the idea of prepaid wireless service and companies like Cricket Wireless. They are a facilities based operator covering markets across the country ranging in size from Houston or Chicago down to Macon and Columbus, Georgia. Their investments in infrastructure make them vested in their markets and communities in a way that a MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) simply won’t be. Finally they bring simplified, no contract, and high-value hardware and service options to their customers. This is exactly what attracted me to originally purchase a Huawei Ascend II from Cricket in August and just this week the Huawei Mercury. In a perfect world this article should be a product and service review but that will have to come later. Read More...
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Cricket Wireless and Google Voice
04/01/12 22:32
Ever since Google relaunched GrandCentral as Google Voice I have relied on the single number service for all my voice calling and SMS across several mobile devices. It is particularly convenient for the delivery of SMS (actually over the data network) when traveling internationally on local prepaid SIM cards. I have used the service simultaneously with phones from Sprint, T-Mobile, AT&T, and MetroPCS. Several months ago the Cricket Ascend II from Huawei was added to this list without any difficulty. Read More...
Why The Market Has Under Valued MetroPCS
06/08/11 14:14
By: Chad Nordby
Before the market opened on August 2, 2011, MetroPCS released their second quarters earnings announcement and Wall Street subsequently sent the stock plummeting 37%. WIth the end of trading on Friday, August 5th, the stock sat at $9.53. In the comparable period the Dow Jones fell 6% raising the questions of whether the no-contract model in general, MetroPCS’ execution, or both were out of favor with Wall Street? Considering that Leap Wireless (Cricket) fell 50% in the same period it appears to be the former. Wall Street may inadvertently created two excellent buying opportunities.
MetroPCS’ earnings announcement contained the following highlights:
Before the market opened on August 2, 2011, MetroPCS released their second quarters earnings announcement and Wall Street subsequently sent the stock plummeting 37%. WIth the end of trading on Friday, August 5th, the stock sat at $9.53. In the comparable period the Dow Jones fell 6% raising the questions of whether the no-contract model in general, MetroPCS’ execution, or both were out of favor with Wall Street? Considering that Leap Wireless (Cricket) fell 50% in the same period it appears to be the former. Wall Street may inadvertently created two excellent buying opportunities.
MetroPCS’ earnings announcement contained the following highlights:
Highest Adjusted EBITDA in Company History
Second Quarter 2011 Highlights Include:
Quarterly net subscriber additions of approximately 200 thousand, resulting in an approximate 19% increase in total subscribers over the prior twelve month period
Quarterly ARPU of $40.49, an increase of $0.65 over second quarter of 2010 and $0.07 sequential increase
Record Adjusted EBITDA of $357 million, an increase of approximately 11% over second quarter of 2010
Quarterly consolidated total revenues of $1.2 billion, an increase of 19% over second quarter of 2010
Quarterly net income of $84 million, an increase of approximately 6% over second quarter of 2010, and EPS of $0.23 compared to EPS of $0.22 in the second quarter of 2010
Boost Mobile's Odd Advertising Campaign
31/07/11 15:52
The Los Angeles market is full of competing Pre-Paid wireless services including MetroPCS and Verizon’s Unleashed offerings. Driving anywhere around the basin and the billboards jump out advertising no contracts and price points of $40 and $50 for various unlimited offerings. MetroPCS also offers their 4G LTE offering and various 3G and 4G Android phones from Huawei and Samsung. As we noted in an earlier post MetroPCS also now offers Metro USA that expands their coverage out to a claimed 90% of the United States’ population. All combined residents of Los Angeles have a wide array of Pre-Paid offerings to select from the major carriers without having to dip into the non-carrier owned MVNO offerings of Net10, Tracfone, Simple Mobile, H2O Wireless, etc..
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Read More...The Illustrious Roots of Prepaid Plans
03/05/11 15:24
Sometimes even an annual report generates a good laugh. The following paragraph from the CALEA section of MetroPCS’ 2010 annual report did jut that. It also unfortunately serves to add fuel to the stereotype that no-contract prepaid services were for sub-prime customers and societal elements that wanted anonymity. e.g. those pursuing careers outside of the law. 2010 was a breakout year for no-contract prepaid services into the mainstream but perceptions take time to change. Read More...
Outfitting Your Mobile Data Needs for MWC 2011 - Barcelona, Spain
08/02/11 18:02
The 2011 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona less than a week away and besides figuring out how to celebrate Valentine’s Day in abstentia the question of mobile data access in Spain looms large. For many corporate attendees to the MWC 2011 mobile data access joins the long list of corporate paid expense items with no concern for the bill. These travelers are usually the ones who immediately check email before the plane reaches the gate or are tapping out messages while waiting in line to clear customs. Regardless of who pays the bill international data roaming from your home carrier usually carries a price tag that makes a three cart Wholefoods shopping trip look like a bargain. Even the unlimited global Blackberry plans largely have been retired because of the growing data consumption enabled through the improved browsers and applications with a few notable exceptions. T-Mobile continues to offer their $19.99 unlimited global e-mail plan but they specifically exclude Internet browsing and applications. Sprint also offer their $69.99 Blackberry Worldwide Data Plan that includes email and data services for applications and browsing but only through their direct business channels. The catch comes in Sprint’s terms and conditions where it prohibits more than 300 MB of off-network data roaming per month. When these plans were conceived in 2006 and 2007 products such as the MiFi, iPhone, and Android devices were not part of the wireless industry lexicon but now they make up the armamentarium of more and more travelers who don’t leave home without their smartphone, tablet, and laptop. The challenge becomes how to efficiently obtain data services on all of these devices without needing a fiscal stimulus package. Read More...
An Experiment In SIM Unlocking
14/01/11 22:07
A quick search of the Internet reveals dozens if not hundreds of websites eager to provide inexpensive SIM unlocking for mobile phones. In general I’m leery of these sites and have historically used tools from the iPhone Dev Team, carrier provided unlock codes (T-Mobile), or purchased factory unlocked (SIM Free) devices from Plemix.com. While planning for a recent trip t Asia I decided to take an AT&T Palm Pre as a backup to a jailbroken iPhone4 on the off chance that ultrasn0w let me down. The crux of the issue was how to get the Palm Pre unlocked since I didn’t have an active SIM for it from AT&T even if they felt inclined to provide the code. Read More...
Prepaid data services in South Africa
06/10/08 06:52
The search for prepaid data services in South Africa could not have been more different than in London. Immediately on clearing baggage claim at the Cape Town international airport I was greeted by a Vodacom and MTN kiosks that were no more than twenty meters away from each other. Read More...
Searching for prepaid data services in London
24/08/08 13:35
This is the preface to a series of posts documenting international data roaming alternatives on two continents.
It was time to head out on a nineteen day, two continent and three country tour. Most people I know prepare for a travel by packing early, double checking that they have sunblock, enough shoes, shirts, underwear and the like. I on the other hand started about twelve hours prior to the seven AM flight by making sure the batteries to my laptop, iPhone, and Samsung i780 were all charged. A second check confirmed that the credit cards and passport were in their usual spot and I was ready to go. Any missing clothing articles could certainly be purchased along the way. My thoughts were on my internet connectivity which I like to have anytime, anywhere and on any device without paying a fortune. Read More...
It was time to head out on a nineteen day, two continent and three country tour. Most people I know prepare for a travel by packing early, double checking that they have sunblock, enough shoes, shirts, underwear and the like. I on the other hand started about twelve hours prior to the seven AM flight by making sure the batteries to my laptop, iPhone, and Samsung i780 were all charged. A second check confirmed that the credit cards and passport were in their usual spot and I was ready to go. Any missing clothing articles could certainly be purchased along the way. My thoughts were on my internet connectivity which I like to have anytime, anywhere and on any device without paying a fortune. Read More...