Calls carrier response to T-Mobile US promotions ‘half-assed’
T-Mobile US’ promotional “Un-carrier” campaign, helmed by colorful CEO John Legere, has obviously attracted the attention of wireless consumers who have flocked to the No. 3 carrier, which recently passed Sprint as the market’s third-largest operator in terms of total network connections.
Now it appears the other carriers are also taking notice, as Legere was quick to point out on his Twitter account, which is very much worth following for telecom industry watchers.
On Aug. 7, Legere tweeted: “And the carriers are at it again … Copying our #uncarrier moves once more and repackaging their half-assed versions as new.”
Last month, T-Mobile US unveiled its “Mobile Without Borders” promotion, which allows postpaid and prepaid customers to place calls, send text messages and access data services in Canada and Mexico by tapping into their rate plans at no extra cost. The data access includes LTE speeds where available, and customers can also place calls from the U.S. to all numbers in Canada and Mexico for no extra cost on qualifying plans. Those not on qualifying plans are charged $10 per month to access the latest roaming option.
On the heels of that announcement, Verizon Wireless said that for $5 per month customers can now call Mexico and Canada for no additional per-minute fees, with calling minutes deducted from their current plans. The offer is also available to its branded prepaid customers.
Customers traveling to Canada and Mexico can now receive 500 calling minutes, 500 sent text messages and unlimited received text messages, and 1 gigabyte of data for $25 per line. Customers can purchase additional data for $20 per 1 GB.
Also falling in line, Sprint announced the Open World promotion. That deal includes various roaming services in 34 countries, with the biggest hook being free access to 1 gigabyte of 3G data for customers traveling in Mexico, Canada, the Dominican Republic, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and Paraguay. Those customers also receive unlimited voice calling and text messaging in those countries. After the 1 GB of 3G data is used, customers can purchase additional gigabytes for $30, which is billed in kilobyte increments.
In response to the Verizon Wireless and Sprint announcements, Legere tweeted: “First @Sprint with a random, more confusing mimic of #MobileWithoutBorders … Then @Verizowireless 2yrs late with a lame #SimpleChoice copy?”
He explained T-Mobile US’ marketing push: “Our mission with #uncarrier is to change the whole wireless industry! When @VerizonWireless and @Sprint copy our moves, consumers win!”
