The Prepaid Press - October 15, 2008 - (Page 8)

PREPAID WIRELESS October 15 · 2008 - 8 Prepaid Wireless Roundup By Joe Pawlikowski MetroPCS, Leap team up for roaming agreement One year after MetroPCS made a bid to acquire Leap Wireless, parent of Cricket, the two have finally come to an agreement. While they won’t be merging, they have set up a roaming pact, which will take them through the next 10 years. Subscribers of both services will see savings on rates while roaming, which ranged from 49 to 79 cents per minute with Metro, and 39 cents per minute for Cricket. The agreement also marks the end of any outstanding litigation between the two companies. Both companies picked up a substantial amount of spectrum in 2006’s AWS-1 auction. They are both starting to roll out those networks now. MetroPCS plans to roll out markets in Boston and New York City in the coming months, while Leap has a number of markets, Those minutes cost 8 cents each. Both long distance and roaming can be funded through the subscriber’s Flex Bucket. Cricket also announced a new area for their unlimited prepaid broadband Internet service. They will now offer it in San Antonio, Texas. Current Cricket subscribers can get the service for $35 per month, while non-Cricket subscribers will pay $40. They claim that this is a truly unlimited service, unlike competitors with soft or hard caps, and can act as a person’s sole entrance to the Internet. This can allow them to forego traditional broadband from cable and phone companies. Finally, Leap has announced their ambitions for 2009 and beyond. Between 2005 and 2007, they were able to double their POPs (Points of Presence), or covered population. The company finished the second quarter covering 61.7 million Americans, and hopes to double that by the end of 2009. This will become possible because of their AWS-1 markets, especially those that have yet to roll out. Cricket also announced a new area for their unlimited prepaid broadband Internet service. including Seattle, that should be completed by the end of 2009. While rumors of another merger attempt haven’t surfaced yet, such a maneuver is not out of the question, especially after the companies finish their line of new markets. This agreement also calls for a spectrum exchange. Metro picked up spectrum in DallasFt. Worth, Shreveport-Bossier City, LakelandWinter Haven (Florida), and a few North Texas markets. Leap now has spectrum in San Diego, Fresno, Seattle, and portions of Washington and Oregon. Both companies will continue to offer their unlimited calling plans, which can include extras like unlimited messaging and mobile Web. These plans can be less than half of the $99 unlimited plans offered by the major national carriers. Virgin Mobile introduces Helio plans, EV-DO network Virgin Mobile is starting to make use of Helio, the MVNO it acquired in June. After renegotiating its agreement with host operator Sprint, Virgin has launched a new line of Helio After renegotiating its agreement with host operator Sprint, Virgin has launched a new line of Helio plans. plans. They’ve also launched their first EV-DO handset. For the most part, Helio remains in tact. They still offer the same phones, including the critically acclaimed Ocean. Their plans include a $99 unlimited plan, which looks nearly identical to Sprint’s Simply Everything plan. For $99 per month, subscribers get unlimited voice, messaging, email, IM, Web, GPS, and all data services. Customers can also opt to have the unlimited extras with lower voice ceilings. These include 500 minutes for $65, and 1,000 minutes for $85. Meanwhile, Virgin has taken the opportunity to release their first EV-DO handset, the Shuttle. The slider phone features a 1.3 megapixel camera, a 2-inch screen, music player, and Bluetooth. The handset costs $99, and is available exclusively through Best Buy. Virgin launched a few of their own data plans to coincide with the Shuttle, all of which come with unlimited VirginXL. For those on monthly plans, $5 gets 20MB of data, and $10 gets 50MB of data. Those with pay-as-you-go plans can get 5MB of data for $5, 20MB of data for $10, or 50MB of data for $20. Joe Pawlikowski is a Senior Editor for Prepaid Reviews, an independent website that reviews prepaid cell phone providers and reports on the prepaid wireless industry. He can be reached at info@prepaidreviews.com Cricket offers new, cheap unlimited plan, plus new broadband market Cricket was active in September, beyond their agreement with MetroPCS. First, they began to WEB SITE ? http://www.iNetGroup.com Website Design and Development Strategy Identi cation NEED A At the iNet Group, We Can Develop the Very Best Web Site! MetroPCS plans to roll out markets in Boston and New York City in the coming months, while Leap has a number of markets that should be completed by the end of 2009. offer a $25 per month unlimited calling plan. This is currently the cheapest unlimited deal on the market. It slides in under their $30 deal, and as such, offers fewer features. To qualify for unlimited minutes, all calls must be placed within the user’s local calling area. This means that calls from any other location, including other Leap Wireless network areas, will cost 35 cents per minute. Long distance calls are also not included in the $25 plan. 1.800.738.1740 Graphic Design Corporate Identity Website Hosting E-commerce Solutions Backend Programming Web Standards Solutions Macromedia® Flash™ E-mail Marketing Solutions Search Engines and Marketing Webmaster Services MetroPCS Sues Virgin Mobile Centers on Right to Alter Phones DALLAS, TX (October 3, 2008) According to the Dallas Business Journal, MetroPCS Communications Inc. is going to court with a rival provider of prepaid wireless phone service, Virgin Mobile USA LP, over a MetroPCS program that allows phones from Virgin and other carriers to be reconfigured to operate on the MetroPCS network. The dispute relates to MetroFlash, which was launched by MetroPCS on June 26 to allow consumers to get certain phones “reflashed,” or altered to work on the MetroPCS network. MetroFlash works on non-MetroPCS phones that use a technical standard called code division multiple access, or CDMA. According to the article, MetroPCS declined to comment. Source: Dallas Business Journal (www.bizjournals.com) PROFESSIONAL WEB DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT SOLUTIONS FROM CONCEPT TO THE WWW CALL US FOR A FREE INITIAL CONSULTATION AND RECEIVE 10% OFF YOUR CUSTOM WEB SITE SOLUTION Copyright © 2005 The iNet Group. All rights reserved. All other copyrights and trademarks are the property of their respective owners - Member AMC - AIGA - NAPP The iNet Group http://www.iNetGroup.com http://www.iNetGroup.com http://www.bizjournals.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of The Prepaid Press - October 15, 2008

The Prepaid Press - October 15, 2008 Oblio Wins Judgment Mobile Remittance Providers Look to Latin America Contents The Retske Report: The Game Changer Regulatory Rundown: New Rules and Requirements Likely for 2009 5 Minutes With Saul Bienenfeld, President of Pop2Call Prepaid Wireless Roundup MetroPCS Sues Virgin Mobile Wireless in Brief Leap’s Cricket Service Introduces Cricket PAYGo Virgin Mobile USA to Launch the Shuttle New Study Shows Mobile Phones Merging Roles TracFone Launches SafeLink Wireless in FL IVI and Titan Sign Agreement with YA Global Boost Mobile Launches New Phone The State of Prepaid Technology: Will the Coming Market Bring You Problems or Opportunities? Calling Cards in Brief The Legal Line Tata Awarded Cisco Powered Status IDT Fails to Meet NYSE Listing Standards BillSoft Offers New Taxation Service Dialogic to Acquire NMS Platforms Business STi Acquires Sprint’s Calling Card Business TelcoBridges Introduces ToolPack System Manager Hypercom Increases Multilane Team Mobile Banking: CGAP Spurs Market Prepaid Resources Introduces PORTABLES Bancorp and Obopay Introduce Payment Card Verities, Inc. Partners with BBB and i2c Inc. The Bancorp Bank Partners with LeagueSafe Donor Dialogue Partners with Springbok Services Mercator Offers New Merchant Report Travelex Launches Budget Calculator MPOWER Companies Join Clinton Global Initiative Payments in Brief Promotions Evolve into Must-Have Marketing Strategy for Prepaid Sector Access Launches Cash-Back Rewards VendTek Partners with United Bank Card Flash Foods, Tedeschi Partner with Pinnacle Prepaid 101: Basics of PINs Gasoline Cards to Benefit Armed Forces, Veterans i2c Inc. Signs Agreement with Diestel iPayStation Partners with Pronto Envios Sodexo Releases Prepaid Incentive Card Heartland Leverages VeriFone Managed Services Retail Focus in Brief Our Advertisers Contact Us

The Prepaid Press - October 15, 2008

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