As wireless penetrates the young-adult market, universities are losing revenues once garnered from on-campus landline phones and long-distance reseller programs. Telispire, which provides privately branded cellular service to various organizations, is aiming to help schools recoup that revenue stream by offering school spirit-inspired cellular phones and service on college campuses.
San Diego State University and Texas Christian University implemented Telispire’s program this summer and have begun offering the privately branded cellular services to students and faculty in time for the fall semester.
SDSU’s Aztalk Wireless, which reflects the school’s Aztecs athletic mascot, and TCU’s PurpleTalk, which boasts the school color, offer students and faculty what Telispire calls competitively priced wireless service and allow the school to recoup dwindling telecommunications revenues.
Universities are losing up to 80 percent of their phone service revenues, according to Telispire Chief Executive Officer Curtis Knobloch. By offering wireless service, they not only can recoup those revenues, but they stand to make even more money.
Up to 77 percent of students come to college campuses with their own wireless handsets, Knoblock said. In addition, the nearing implementation of wireless local number portability will likely give Telispire’s service a boost, as it will allow some students to port their current numbers to a phone offered by the school. In addition, Telispire hopes to expand its service to offer family plans and alumni plans, efforts the company hopes also will be bolstered by WLNP.
Telispire provides a customer service center on campus, like in SDSU’s bookstore, where subscribers can purchase services, change or update services and ask questions, and the company provides back-office support including network monitoring and billing services.
Student-friendly pricing includes handsets that start at no charge and service plans starting at $20 per month. The most popular package, according to Knobloch, costs $45 per month and includes 500 anytime minutes, unlimited nights and weekends and free long-distance. Telispire also offers month-to-month service that does not require a contract. The universities are only offering voice service today but have expressed interest in adding content services in the future, which could include alerts about class cancellations and other campus events.
Telispire’s service is provided by Sprint PCS and the company is in talks with other carriers as well, according to Knobloch. Telispire continues to target universities of all sizes for the program.
