Cricket Wireless and MetroPCS, prepaid proxies of AT&T Mobility and T-Mobile US, respectively, both now offer $30 entry-level plans with “unlimited” services
AT&T Mobility’s Cricket Wireless prepaid brand unveiled a new entry-level smartphone plan that includes “unlimited” domestic talk, text messaging and data services for $30 per month, matching rival MetroPCS.
The new Cricket plan includes one gigabyte of unthrottled data access, which once exhausted is throttled down to 2G speeds through the rest of the billing period. The maximum data speeds, like all of Cricket’s plans, are capped at eight megabits per second when connected to the carrier’s LTE network and 4 Mbps when connected to its HSPA-based “4G” network.
The plan slides in below the previous entry point that is priced at $40 per month – or $35 when connected to an automatic payment option – and includes 2.5 GB of unthrottled data access. It also matches the entry point for T-Mobile US’ MetroPCS brand in both pricing and features.
AT&T Mobility’s prepaid business, which includes Cricket and the GoPhone brands, remains a significant driver for the carrier. The segment posted 365,000 net customer additions during the second quarter of this year, which was a 10% year-over-year increase and the only segment to post such growth.
Only T-Mobile US managed to outgrow AT&T Mobility in the prepaid space in the last quarter, adding 476,000 net connections, while both Verizon Wireless and Sprint posted customer losses in their prepaid efforts.
AT&T Mobility last month bolstered its GoPhone efforts with a multiline option allowing customers to sign up to five consumer lines or 10 business lines on a single prepaid account. Each line must be at least the carrier’s $45 per month plan, which includes unlimited calling, text messaging and up to 3 GB of unthrottled data. Customers also can select the GoPhone $60 per month plan, which includes up to 6 GB of unthrottled data and the ability to tap the data allotment in Mexico and Canada.
For the second line added, the account receives a $5 per month discount; a $10 discount for the third line; $15 discount for the fourth line; and $20 discount for each additional line. Consumer accounts will see a maximum of $50 a month in total discounts, with enterprise customers eligible for up to $150 per month in discounts if activating all 10 eligible lines.
The promotion does pale in comparison to a long-running offer from Cricket Wireless, which provides up to $100 in total rate plan savings across five lines.
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