As part of an industry-wide fight against robocalling, T-Mobile is introducing new technologies today to help consumers fight against phone call scams.
Using patent-pending technology, T-Mobile is rolling out features that will integrate directly into the Un-carrier’s network. No apps to download, no settings to configure, simply dial a number to enable the protection.
If you’re one of the 2.5M Americans planning a European vacation this summer, T-Mobile has a pretty sweet deal for its Simple Choice customers: free unlimited speed data throughout July and August, up from the normal 128Kbps limit.
The Un-carrier today announced it’s unleashing summer travel, giving customers unlimited high-speed data, up to 4G LTE speeds, throughout Europe all summer long […]
Starting July 1st all the way through August 31st, T-Mobile’s giving Simple Choice customers unlimited high-speed data across all of Europe (except Andorra) – all at absolutely no additional cost – so you can share, Skype, snap and scope every moment of your European holiday …
In the latest installment of their Uncarrier initiatives, T-Mobile today announced their new #GetThanked campaign. The campaign puts a focus on “thanking” T-Mobile customers for their loyalty to the company and brand by giving away free T-Mobile’s stock, gifts and promotions ever Tuesday, and inflight Wi-Fi for domestic fliers with Gogo.
T-Mobile has announced its latest “un-carrier” initiative, dubbed “Un-carrier Unwrapped.” Rather than a permanent addition to the company’s offerings, Un-carrier Unwrapped is a month-long event during which the carrier will gift its subscribers and new customers with special deals and benefits.
The first of those was announced today: unlimited LTE data for all subscribers on Simple Choice post-paid plans for the next three months.
T-Mobile often rolls out “Un-carrier” initiatives that intend to challenge its competitors (which sometimes get copied), and John Legere’s latest announcement for the company is no different. The T-Mobile CEO shared today that the carrier soon start offering the same financing options to customers with weak credit as it provides for well qualified customers. The program is called Smartphone Equality, and here’s how it works…
Expand
Expanding
Close
What does T-Mobile US CEO John Legere have to say about comments from parent company Deutsche Telekom this week calling his “Uncarrier” approach unsustainable?
“Its total bullshit,” according to a brief response from Legere referring to comments made by Deutsche Telekom CEO Timotheus Höttges in an interview earlier this week.
According to Re/code, Höttges “admitted that T-Mobile’s current approach is not sustainable” during the interview: “The question is always the economics in the long term … and earning appropriate money,” Hoettges said. “You have to earn your money back at one point in time.”
Höttges also noted that he was “intrigued by the idea of having a combination with Sprint and being the ‘super-maverick’ in the market,” referring to T-Mobile’s plans for a merger with the company that fell through last year.
On sustainability, Höttges claimed T-Mobile’s aggressive discounts and Uncarrier approach would not work long-term as the company invests approximately $4-$5 billion each year to keep up with the other carriers.
Despite disagreements on sustainability, Höttges did briefly attempt to praise Legere’s work during the interview: “His management style will never be adaptable to Germany,”Hoettges said, although he added that Legere’s competitive nature and desire to win are very much in line with the company’s culture. “I like people being disruptive… I like people who are brave. He is very much fitting to our DNA, how we want to be, even if he is very American in his approach.”
T-Mobile CEO John Legere is known for trolling his competitors, and it looks like he decided to—in the spirit of the season, of course—mock them some more as a Christmas gift. T-Mobile has spent the entire year going through several different “uncarrier” events (now totaling eight), attacking its competitors and introducing services and features that it hopes will set it apart. And as Legere touches on in the below video, plenty of people seem to have been convinced that switching is worth their time…
T-Mobile announced its latest Un-carrier initiative today with a new “Data Stash” feature that allows customers to bank unused data and carry it over month-to-month for up to a year.
Expand
Expanding
Close
T-Mobile has announced that it will be unveiling its latest contract-free deal in a livestreamed ‘fireside chat’ tomorrow, Un-carrier 8.0.
Un-carrier 8.0 is ready to roll, and you’re invited to join us for the unveiling of one of our biggest and boldest moves yet! This one is so big we had to keep it a surprise.
Join John Legere, CEO of T-Mobile, as he unveils the news during a live fireside chat with David Pogue of Yahoo! News. David will be taking questions for John from Twitter through @JohnLegere and @Pogue and the #Uncarrier8 hashtag.
The company hasn’t hinted at any of the details, but we’ll of course let you know …
Expand
Expanding
Close
As noted by the folks over at TmoNews, the magenta-branded un-carrier will be offering a discount of up to $50 on all iPhones starting tomorrow. An internal memo leaked from the company indicates that not every model will get the full $50 drop, but at least a few will. The cut comes off of the “device-only price,” or the full price of the phone. Subsidized models won’t be affected, it seems.
This discount is just the latest blow in the ongoing war between U.S. mobile carriers. Sprint recently announced all-new family and individual plans in an attempt to compete with more capable networks like AT&T and Verizon, while scrappy underdog T-Mobile continues its campaign against the norms established by its competition.
T-Mobile announced today that it’s adding a new data option to its Simple Starter plans that will let users quadruple their data for much less than the competition.
Currently the company’s Simple Starter plans start at $40 for unlimited talk, text, and 500MB of LTE data. Starting early next month, the carrier will let customers on the plan bump up to a total of 2GB of data for just an extra $5 per month. T-Mobile is promoting the option as a better alternative to overage fees charged by other carriers.
CEO John Legere compared the option to his competitors noting that if you “get Verizon’s $50 plan and use just one gig more data, and the price jumps to $65. It’s crazy.”
“People who use loads of data use T-Mobile,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile. “And it’s no wonder. The old guard telecoms punish people for using more data on their networks with crazy overage charges and fees. Get Verizon’s $50 plan and use just one gig more data, and the price jumps to $65. It’s crazy. At T-Mobile, we designed our network data-strong so our customers could use the hell out of it. And that’s just what they’re doing.”
T-Mobile notes that the deal is a limited time offer and subject to change, so you’ll want to add the data to your plan before the promotion ends to take advantage. The promo officially kicks in on September 3.
Sprint’s plans to buy out the U.S. arm of T-Mobile from Deutsche Telekom came to an end today, the Wall Street Journal reported. According to the Journal, Sprint’s leadership was concerned that it would be too difficult to get United States regulators to agree to the merger.
The announcement is not yet official, but is said to be planned for Wednesday. If the merger had suceeded, the two companies would have united under the Sprint banner, possibly abandoning all of the “un-carrier” moves made by T-Mobile in recent years, including free one-week iPhone test drives on the network and unlimited music streaming on a variety of services.
After announcing its new “Test Drive” feature allowing customers to trial an iPhone 5s for free on the T-Mobile network, the carrier is already sharing some stats on the new initiative. According to T-Mobile, “More than 12,000 people have already signed up to start cheating on their carrier.” That means around 500 consumers per hour (or almost 9 per minute) from T-Mobile’s competitors have signed-up to take home an iPhone 5s for a free week-long trial on the T-Mobile network. If T-Mobile’s plan works it could convince at least some of those consumers to make the switch for good.
Expand
Expanding
Close
T-Mobile has just announced at its “Uncarrier 5.0” event (which apparently double as the Uncarrier 6.0 event) that all streaming music services will now be free to stream on T-Mobile, including iTunes Radio. This also applies to Pandora, iHeartRadio, Slacker Radio, and Spotify.
Any streaming you do will always be done over the company’s fastest available network, and won’t count towards your high-speed data limit.
Customers can visit T-Mobile’s website to request new services to be added to the “music freedom” selection. As streaming services gain votes, they will be added to the program.
T-Mobile announced today that it has partnered with Apple to rent customers a brand-new iPhone 5s (“or whatever is the latest and great iPhone”) to test out the company’s network for one week as part of its “Uncarrier 5.0” event. The offer is part of the “un-carrier’s” new “Test Drive” program that attempts to lure away subscribers on competing networks. The program starts on June 23rd.
Users can sign up on T-Mobile’s website and will receive an iPhone 5s to use for one week on the T-Mobile wireless network. After the trial period ends, customers can drop the phone off at a T-Mobile store. The entire process costs nothing.
The company hopes that this will eliminate buyer’s remorse and give people a chance to see how well the network will work for them on a daily basis. The full press release is below:
Following a number of new initiatives launched last week including its new Simple Starter plan and new perks for tablet users, T-Mobile issued a press release today calling for an end to overages and urging consumers to sign a petition for AT&T, Sprint and Verizon to do the same.
Traditional wireless plans start with a low monthly fee for a fixed amount of domestic minutes, texts or data. Once consumers go over those limits – even by a little – they’re hit with dramatically higher rates and extreme penalties. These plans seem purpose-built to drive customers over that invisible line into massive overage charges.
In the press release, the carrier noted it will end all domestic overages in starting in May for the June billing cycle (something we thought it was doing since the beginning of Uncarrier?). The wording also sounds a lot like it could continue to charge overages for international use. T-Mobile’s new Simple Starter plan does not include the free international perks it unveiled for other plans last year, so it looks like the carrier is giving itself some room to continue charging overages for international use in some cases.
T-Mobile has been doing a lot of talking about ending overages, and its approach might be slightly more transparent than the other guys, but at the end of the day an overage is an overage and even T-Mobile charges some customers for more data. It’s new Simple Starter plan for example which caps at 500MB for LTE data, will force users to purchase $5/day or $10/week “additional data sessions.”
The company’s full press release is below.
T-Mobile Abolishes Consumer Overages,
Challenges Other Wireless Providers to Follow Suit
Legere Starts Petition for Consumers to Call on AT&T, Verizon and Sprint to End Overages
BELLEVUE, Wash. – April 14, 2014 – T-Mobile US, Inc. (NYSE: TMUS) today shifted the national conversation on wireless to a new level, unveiling its latest Un-carrier move – a campaign to eliminate overage penalties, one of the most reviled wireless industry practices. While abolishing overages for all customers on T-Mobile consumer plans, its CEO has also laid down a challenge to the nation’s largest carriers, AT&T, Verizon and Sprint, to do the same.
More than 20 million Americans were hit with punitive overage charges in 2013. And these penalties from the three largest U.S. carriers take more than an incredible $1 billion out of consumers’ pockets every year.
“Today I’m laying down a challenge to AT&T, Verizon and Sprint to join T-Mobile in ending these outrageous overage penalties for all consumers – because it’s the right thing to do,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile. “Overage fees are flat out wrong. Agree with me? Join me in putting this challenge to all the major national carriers by signing my petition on Change.org. Right here. Take one minute to be a part of this consumer movement.”
Last year, T-Mobile banished annual service contracts and began phasing out overage charges with the launch of Simple Choice. T-Mobile’s stance against annual service contracts is now well known by consumers, and today it’s taking on the even more unpopular and unjustified practice of slamming consumers with surprise bills in the form of overages charges.
“Charging overage fees is a greedy, predatory practice that needs to go,” continued Legere. “Starting in May for bills arriving in June – regardless of whether you’re on Simple Choice, Simple Starter or an older plan, we’re abolishing overages for good. Period.”
Traditional carriers’ entry-level plans lure customers in with a low monthly fee for a fixed amount of domestic minutes, texts or data. Once consumers go over those limits – even by a little – they’re hit with much higher rates, often dramatically higher. These plans are purpose-built to drive customers over that invisible line into massive overage charges. The result has been a culture of fear, worry and surprise every time the wireless bill arrives. For example, an individual on AT&Ts entry-level plan, advertised at $45 per month, will pay $125 if he uses just the average amount of data for a U.S. smartphone user (1.5 GB per person).
“The worst thing about these overage fees is that they’re often inflicted on those who can least afford them,” added Legere. “As an advocate for consumers, we’re putting a stop to that. I personally won’t be satisfied until we obliterate this shameful practice from the entire wireless industry.”
To give a voice to U.S. wireless consumers, Legere has started an online petition at Change.org/AbolishOverages calling on AT&T, Verizon and Sprint to end overages. You are invited to sign the petition and add your voice to the growing movement to rid the wireless industry of domestic overages once and for all.
A day after it announced cheaper plans with voice and data, T-Mobile is sharing more interesting news of upcoming promotions. Starting April 12th, T-Mobile will begin offering iPads and other tablets with LTE at the price normally offered by WiFi-only tablets. For instance, an iPad Air with only WiFi normally runs $499, while an iPad with WiFi and LTE for connecting to the Internet from anywhere normally runs $629. T-Mobile’s promotion will offer new iPads with LTE for the cost of a WiFi-only model for a limited time (saving you $130 in the iPad’s case).
T-Mobile is also offering customers a free 1GB of data use for the rest of the year. The carrier announced last fall that it already includes 200MB of data for tablet customers and today’s announcement adds to that free data offering. After the 2014 promotion, the 1GB of data usage for tablets will be $10 a month while the 200MB of data will remain free. T-Mobile also announced some news for people using tablets with mobile data from other carriers…
Expand
Expanding
Close
T-Mobile is about to kick off three days of announcements for new initiatives starting with a new $40 Simple Starter plan that it says is a first for a U.S. carrier. Starting on April 12, T-Mobile claims the new $40 plan will make it the first to offer “unlimited talk and text, and up to 500MB of 4G LTE data and tethering with no data overages” at that price point. In this case, since the LTE data isn’t unlimited, no overages isn’t entirely accurate. It really means you’ll have to purchase additional data once you hit that 500MB cap for the month. In its press release, T-Mobile compared the new plan to AT&T’s entry-level plan:
T-Mobile contrasted its new flat-rate value plan against AT&T’s entry-level plan, whose costs immediately jump by $20 increments – in what amounts to a massive 44% price hike on those customers least able to absorb overages and bill shock. With Simple Starter, you’ll get a ton more data compared to AT&T’s 300MB, and you’ll never pay data overages again – ever. And with data capped at 500MB, you’ll never pay more until you choose to pay more – by purchasing additional data sessions whenever you like.
T-Mobile’s argument is that its method of charging for more data is more transparent than the other guys, but at the end of the day an overage is an overage and paying for more data will cost you $5/day or $10/week for T-Mobile’s “additional data sessions.” In reality, AT&T’s $45 300MB plan is comparable considering it only charges users $5 more for the next tier up, $50 for 1GB a month.
The new Simple Starter plan won’t, however, have access to the unlimited international data and texting perks that come with T-Mobile’s Simple Choice plans. They start at $50, $10 more than the new Simple Starter plan. There’s more about today’s announcement on T-Mobile CEO John Legere’s blog and the full press release below.
Day 1 of 3: T-Mobile On a Roll Again with Multiple Initiatives … First with the Launch of its All-New “Simple Starter Plan”
Un-carrier introduces zero-risk, no annual contract plan for value-conscious Americans –
and much-needed relief from other carriers’ high-risk entry-level contracts
BELLEVUE, Wash. – April 9, 2014 –T-Mobile US, Inc. (NYSE: TMUS) has announced the first in what it promises will be the rapid-fire roll-out of multiple initiatives to extend its Un-carrier consumer revolution to several new fronts. First, the company today introduced its all-new Simple Starter value plan, designed to offer a desperately needed alternative to the data overage-intensive entry-level plans the largest U.S. carriers target at Americans. This new plan makes T-Mobile the only major U.S. carrier to offer a single line of 4G LTE data at just $40 a month.
Launching April 12th, the Simple Starter plan – at only $40 a month for unlimited talk and text and up to 500MB 4G LTE data and tethering – is purpose-built for value-conscious wireless customers and small businesses that want predictability and affordability, and promises absolutely no data overages. All on America’s fastest nationwide 4G LTE network.
“Un-carrier is a movement, not a marketing strategy. We are freeing consumers from the predatory practices of traditional US wireless companies and that includes these plans that start with a low price and a low data limit, but then hit you with insane fees if you send one too many emails,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile. “It’s wrong! And I personally want to drive those ridiculous schemes out of this industry. We will continue to be relentless and bring this forced march of change to the market every day so consumers can be creative with and enjoy the true benefits of wireless. I know we have it right and when we all are done reporting results from the first quarter – I think you’ll share my conviction.”
T-Mobile contrasted its new flat-rate value plan against AT&T’s entry-level plan, whose costs immediately jump by $20 increments — in what amounts to a massive 44 percent price hike on those customers least able to absorb overages and bill shock. With Simple Starter, you’ll get a ton more data compared to AT&T’s 300MB, and you’llnever pay data overages again – ever. And with data capped at 500MB, you’ll never pay more until you choose to pay more – by purchasing additional data sessions whenever you like.
“Today, we are introducing a zero-risk value plan that will give consumers everywhere a predictable and affordable solution,” said Mike Sievert, Chief Marketing Officer for T-Mobile. “Even more important, we are the only major U.S. carrier to offer a single line of 4G LTE data at just $40 per month. It is a fantastic deal!”
And, just as with all Un-carrier customers, those on the Simple Starter plan can enjoy many of the same benefits of being with T-Mobile, including America’s fastest nationwide 4G LTE network, and paying little or nothing down for your new device on T-Mobile’s equipment installment plan (EIP).
Simple Starter customers also qualify for T-Mobile’s break-through “Contract Freedom” offer which pays the entire contract Early Termination Fees of customers who switch to T-Mobile and trade-in their phones. The plan also qualifies for the company’s revolutionary JUMP!™ upgrade program, so customers can choose to get handset protection and they can upgrade when they want. Plus, as always with T-Mobile, there is the freedom of no annual service contract.
The company added that Simple Starter is designed as a domestic plan for people that don’t have a need for international texting and roaming. However, for customers that do want additional international benefits, the company’s flagship Simple Choice plan includes unlimited international data and texting from 120+ countries and destinations, plus unlimited international texting from the U.S. to virtually anywhere all at no extra charge.
For more information on what to expect from the Un-carrier in the next three days, check out President and CEO of T-Mobile, John Legere’s blog about the upcoming initiatives being rolled out. And for further information, visit theT-Mobile Newsroom.
+Taxes and fees. Limited time offer; subject to change. Fastest LTE network based on download speeds. Qualifying service & device purchase with port-in required for ETF payment. . See T-Mobile.com for specific offer and service details.
About T-Mobile US, Inc.
As America’s Un-carrier, T-Mobile US, Inc. (NYSE: “TMUS”) is redefining the way consumers and businesses buy wireless services through leading product and service innovation. The company’s advanced nationwide 4G and 4G LTE network delivers outstanding wireless experiences for customers who are unwilling to compromise on quality and value. Based in Bellevue, Wash., T-Mobile US provides services through its subsidiaries and operates its flagship brands, T-Mobile and MetroPCS. It currently serves approximately 46.7 million wireless subscribers and provides products and services through approximately 70,000 points of distribution, including approximately 8,000 T-Mobile and MetroPCS branded locations and 62,000 third-party locations, as well as distribution through our websites. For more information, please visit http://www.t-mobile.com.
Say what you will about T-Mobile CEO John Legere’s audacious personality (no, really, I’m sure he won’t mind), but under his lead and the company’s Uncarrier campaign the carrier has made quite a few consumer-friendly moves with its policies.
In what the carrier is calling Uncarrier 4.0, the company is likely to announce plans to cover the early termination fees charged to customers switching from AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint during a contract.
That’s according to an ad which leaked and was later pulled. The ad (shown above) was first spotted by Droid-Life which reports the new policy will cover ETF fees up to $350 when you move at least three lines to T-Mobile…
Expand
Expanding
Close
Photo: Fox
AT&T has announced incentives worth up to $450 for T-Mobile customers who switch to their service. The move is being made in response to T-Mobile’s Uncarrier offers, after AT&T recently said that it too expected to move toward separating device and service charges.
Proving the old adage that there’s no such thing as a free lunch, the deal of course comes with strings. First, $250 of that is the maximum you’ll receive in return for trading in your existing T-Mobile handset. To get the full $250, you’ll need a recent handset in good condition – in which case you’d almost certainly get more selling it privately …
Expand
Expanding
Close
Blame it on ‘unnecessary complexity’, but T-Mobile revealed today plans to move customers still using paying old rates to updated plans in an effort to reduce the number of plans it services (via TmoNews).
The Uncarrier is set make these changes starting next month and will give customers until February 2014 to choose new plans before imposing fees for users on grandfathered plans.
For T-Mobile’s part, the carrier offered the following statement:
Maintaining thousands of rate plans is the norm in the industry, but we think it creates unnecessary complexity. Simple is better, which is why we’re reducing the number of older plans in our systems. We’re giving customers on these plans the opportunity to choose a plan that best meets their needs. For the vast majority, their plan will provide similar or better features at a comparable price.
News of T-Mobile’s plans originally surfaced when one customer posted the letter seen below to an online forum:
Expand
Expanding
Close
When T-Mobile introduced the iPhone 5 for $99 down, many were quick to point out that the device would cost much less than the $649 Apple charges, costing customers a total of $579 after completing T-Mobile’s $20/month, 24 month payment plan. However, T-Mobile didn’t talk much about the fact that $99 down price point was introductory pricing that would eventually increase. Today marks the end of T-Mobile’s introductory pricing, as noted by TmoNews, with the carrier increasing the minimum down payment on an iPhone 5 for qualified customers to $149 for the entry level 16GB model.
All other models of the iPhone will see the same $50 increase with the 32GB and 64GB models now requiring a $249 and $349 down payment on T-Mobile 24 month payment plan. Despite the increase, it still gives T-Mobile the cheapest pricing on iPhone 5 around with the total cost of the entry level 16GB model now $629. That’s $20 less than the retail price of the unlocked device.
Although today marks the end of introductory promotional pricing for the iPhone 5 on T-Mobile, the carrier will continue to offer its trade in offer on previous generation iPhones to allow customers to get an iPhone 5 for $0 down.
Expand
Expanding
Close
Following the launch of T-Mobile’s new “Uncarrier” strategy alongside the $99 iPhone 5 and new no subsidy pricing plans last month, today the Washington State Attorney General has ordered T-Mobile to change its advertising calling its promise to offer no annual contracts “deceptive”.
The result of a court order filed by Attorney General Bob Ferguson and signed by T-Mobile will ensure the carrier’s commitment to changing advertising in order to properly outline “the limitations of its new no-contract” service plans. It will also allow “customers duped by the deceptive ads to exit their contracts with no penalty.”
“As Attorney General, my job is to defend consumers, ensure truth in advertising, and make sure all businesses are playing by the rules,” Ferguson said. “My office identified that T-Mobile was failing to disclose a critical component of their new plan to consumers, and we acted quickly to stop this practice and protect consumers across the country from harm.”
More specifically, the Attorney General’s investigation found T-Mobile “failed to disclose that customers who purchase a phone using the 24-month payment plan” would be required to stay with T-Mobile’s plans for 24 months or pay the balance owed on the phone in order to cancel their service. T-Mobile has been working with the Attorney General’s Office to come to a solution and has now agreed to the following terms:
Expand
Expanding
Close
Though T-Mobile probably has more name recognition than no-contract carrier Cricket, the latter carrier is speaking up about its competitive iPhone plans.
Cricket is making its iPhone plans more affordable starting today, lowing its unlimited calling, messaging, and 1 GB data plan to $50, which has been standard for other devices. Customers can opt for 2.5 GB or 5 GB of data at $60 and $70, respectively.
Customers with two smartphones on a family plan can save $10 for each line at $40 per line for the standard plan.
It appears that Cricket isn’t going to sit back and watch T-Mobile and Virgin run away with pre-paid iPhone sales.
