Sprint Nextel slices prepaid segment even thinner

Sprint Nextel Corp. managed to find another prepaid niche it had not already covered with the launch this morning of its PayLo offering through its Virgin Mobile subsidiary. The service brings a voice-focused component to what has been a data-centric menu from Virgin Mobile.
The new offering includes a 400-minute voice plan for $20 per month, or a per-minute rate of 5 cents per minute. Or for those that talk even less, the plan allows customers to pay $20 to “maintain” an active account for up to 90 days with voice calls during that time charged at 20 cents per minute.
Virgin Mobile’s Chief Marketing Officer Neil Lindsay said the service is targeted at customers looking to keep their wireless spend at $20 or less per month.
“It’s the perfect complement to our multibrand strategy,” Lindsay said in a press release.
Virgin Mobile said the service would roll out in retail locations this month, including RadioShack and Best Buy locations as well as at other “drug and convenience stores.”
Devices for the service will initially be limited to the LG Electronics Co. Ltd. LG101 at $20 and the Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. M340 at $40, both of which are available at the same price for Sprint Nextel’s recently launched Common Cents offering. In addition to the voice plans, customer can also send or receive text messages for 15 cents each, picture messages for 25 cents each or access data services for $1.50 per megabyte. In other words, if you are looking to access messaging or data services, Sprint Nextel has better offerings for you.
The PayLo service joins Sprint Nextel’s cavalcade of prepaid options that include the data-centric services from Virgin Mobile, unlimited voice and data offering from Boost Mobile, the Common Cents pay-as-you-go service and its federally subsidized Assurance Wireless plans.
In addition to bolstering its prepaid line up, Sprint Nextel also reported that its Assurance offering has expanded to Florida and Louisiana joining its continued availability in Maryland, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.
The service provides a free phone and 200 free minutes of voice service each month to eligible customers. Customers can then pay an additional 10 cents per minute for calls over their allotted bucket and 10 cents for text, e-mail or instant messages. Subsidies for the service are supported by the Lifeline Assistance program, which is part of the Low Income Program of the Universal Service Fund.