New offer has Sprint reimbursing all costs related to switching
Sprint is expanding the scale and targeting of its rivals’ customer bases with a new promotion that will reimburse all customer costs related to switching to the operator.
The offer, which launched today, will pay the early termination fee and remaining payments on a device’s installment plan for customers who switch to Sprint from any of its competitors. Customers who take Sprint up on the offer will also be able to take advantage of the carrier’s “Cut Your Bill in Half” promotion and all packaged deals like its “iPhone for Life Plan.”
To take advantage of paying off a device’s installment plan, customers will need to turn in their old devices in good working condition and in turn either purchase a Sprint-compatible device outright or sign up for one of Sprint’s installment or lease offers. This should allow the carrier to recover some of the costs associated with the offer as it can then resell the device through its sister company Brightstar. Sprint’s CEO, Marcelo Claure, who founded Brightstar, has said the company is looking to unlock value from the relationship.
Sprint earlier this year targeted T-Mobile US with an offer of up to $200 in guaranteed trade-in value for a T-Mobile US device in addition to its previously offered ETF payment of up to $350 per line. That T-Mobile US-targeted offer was set to run through April 9. Sprint did note several times in its latest announcement that it is home to 56 million connections on its network, perhaps a counter to recent claims that it had lost the industry’s No. 3 position to T-Mobile US.
Sprint managed to post improved quarterly results for the final three months of last year, though that improvement came at a cost as the carrier continued to throw money on the counter in its attempt to stem customer losses. Sprint is also reportedly set to host Google’s mobile virtual network operator program in partnership with T-Mobile US.
T-Mobile US recently noted that it was continuing to see positive porting trends against its rivals, though a slowing in regards to Sprint. Management at Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility both noted at recent investor conferences that they were seeing a lessening of competitive pressure as the first quarter progressed. AT&T reported in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing that it was on track to add 400,000 postpaid net customer additions for Q1, boosted by lower churn levels, but admitted that growth would be driven by tablet sales, which generate lower monthly recurring revenue when compared with smartphones.
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