Boost goes after the Big Three with a new unlimited offering
Dish Network’s prepaid MVNO Boost Mobile last week announced a new marketing campaign targeting the big three operators. Dubbed the “Carrier Crusher”, Boost Mobile’s new program features an unlimited data plan, which comes with 35GB of high-speed data (with throttling thereafter) for only $25 per month. The major caveat here is that the $25/month price is attainable only when a customer pays for the yearly service fee of $300 ($25 x 12) upfront. Notably, Boost Mobile also launched additional “Carrier Crusher” plans targeting users who do not need unlimited data offerings. The carrier has a 5GB data plan that is priced at $15/month when paid three or six months in advance per month for Unlimited 5GB 5G/4G Data (paid every three months or six months). The same plan can be purchased for $12.5/months when paying the annual (12-month) upfront.
The NPD Take:
- Boost Mobile has been steadily losing subscribers since Dish’s takeover back in July 2020; thus the MVNO’s focus on multi-month plans is the right strategy as such plans help fight churn. According to the NPD Connected Intelligence Mobility survey, 48% of prepaid customers are very or extremely interested in signing up for a multi-month plan in return for discounted service pricing.
- While the aggressive pricing requiring multi-month subscriptions should help stop the turnover and bring in new customers, it may not be enough to turn the tables around for Boost Mobile. The MVNO has been rounding out the bottom with a 16% net promoter score (NPS) compared to most other prepaid rivals whose NPS scores range between 25% and 45%.
T-Mobile spills 5G adoption info
T-Mobile’s CEO Mike Sievert last week during the USB conference shed some light on the Uncarrier’s performance in its quest in migrating customers to its new 5G network. Sievert revealed that about 30% of T-Mobile’s customers already own a 5G-powered handset. The CEO also commented that customers on its high-end Magenta Max plan, which comes with unthrottled unlimited data at full 5G speeds, are consuming 35 GB of cellular data monthly.
The NPD Take:
- T-Mobile’s fast pace in 5G adoption is not surprising as the carrier has a substantial cost advantage over rival Verizon Wireless, which requires OEM partners to add mmWave spectrum support in their 5G phones. According to the NPD Connected Intelligence Devices Marketplace report, 72% of T-Mobile’s device SKUs support 5G versus 61% and 64% 5G device penetration at AT&T and Verizon, respectively.
- T-Mobile’s proclamation on its Magenta Max users 35 GB/month cellular data consumption rates is a testament to the correlation between the consumption and unlimited data plans. According to the NPD Connected Intelligence Data Consumption Report, T-Mobile customers lead the market in cellular consumption rates (mean 23.3 GB/month; median 17.1 GB/month) with some users on the Max Magenta plan going over 100 GB/month. The report also shows that smartphone owners on 5G phones consume 30%+ more cellular data than users on 4G LTE phones, thus T-Mobile’s over-indexing in 5G phone penetration coupled with its non-throttle unlimited plans should help the carrier maintain its lead in consumption.