Boost Mobile, a subsidiary of Sprint Nextel, will introduce next week a phone and data plan for $50 a month. The plan includes unlimited anytime calling, text messaging, wireless Web, and walkie-talkie services anywhere in the U.S.
In its announcement, Boost noted its competitive advantages against regional carriers MetroPCS and Leap Wireless International’s Cricket, which offer competing unlimited plans. For one thing, Boost said its plan offers unlimited nationwide service in 15,800 cities on the Nextel National Network, with no additional telecom taxes or fees for activation, roaming, traveling or long distance.
Boost said its plan has one monthly fee, with no hidden charges, and offers a higher-quality network at a good price. It claimed Cricket has quadruple its number of dropped calls and MetroPCS has more than twice as many.
‘A Lot of Wrong’
Boost Mobile President Matt Carter said “wireless customers know there’s a lot of wrong out there,” such as overage charges and extra costs for voice mail and roaming. But, he added, “our new flat-rate plan will not include any of these charges,” because “what you see is what you get.”
Boost claims a potential customer pool of about 274 million. According to news reports, Leap covers about 64 million and MetroPCS about 60 million.
Boost is the youth-oriented subsidiary of Sprint, which has been struggling to avoid further reductions in its falling customer base. The new monthly unlimited plan uses the company’s underutilized iDEN network.
Customers choosing the monthly unlimited plan will need to get a compatible Boost phone and activate their account. Existing subscribers can switch to monthly unlimited.
‘Sets a Floor’
Bill Ho, an analyst for industry research firm Current Analysis, called the new offering a “very good plan” and added that it now “sets a new floor for unlimited, prepaid national calling.”
He pointed out that, just 10 months ago, unlimited plans…