Almost everyone has a cell phone these days. Whether it is a basic model or a smart phone, even preteen girls are seen walking around town with phones on their ears. The industry competition is fierce. The trend seems to be leaning towards the prepaid plans. The prepaid cell phone market has advanced. Before, prepaid customers had to go and purchase minute cards to add talk time to their wireless device. Now, prepaid customers have monthly plans just like a contract customer, the only difference is the customer pays the bill at the beginning of the month and usage is unlimited.
Contract companies, such as Verizon and AT T;, were slowly losing their customer bases to companies like CricKet and Boost Mobile that offered customers no contract plans. These no contract plans also offered unlimited talk time and internet access at a lower price. There was no credit check and no commitment. These players in the game came into this booming industry at the right time. They were tapping into areas of the market that companies, such as AT T; and Verizon, were previously unable to fully penetrate due to their inability to provide service to the non-committed.
Just as with any new technology, cell phones have become more inexpensive over time. When Verizon was established in 1995, cell phones were pricey. Since then, Verizon has lowered prices accordingly to remain competitive, but the majority of its customer base was long term, existing customers. The same applies for AT T;, which merged with Cingular wireless in 2005. So will these contract companies lose in a wireless war?
Contract companies have millions of loyal customers, some of them have been under the same provider for over a decade and are resistant to change. Also, business men and women may want to be under a contract provider for fear of giving the impression to their clientele and co-worker’s that their credit is not good enough to obtain a contract plan. On the other hand, who can resist paying less for the same service? To play both of these angles, contract providers have begun tapping into both markets, prepaid and contract. However, service providers such as Verizon charge higher rates for prepaid cell phone service. Which providers do customers prefer? That is why to save money, it is advisable to use super boost wifi.
According to Top Ten Reviews, Verizon is still ranked number one for cell phone service; followed by AT T.; No-contract providers, such as Cricket and Boost Mobile, ranked 5th and 6th on the top-ten list. The ranking is based on factors including phones and features, plans, additional features and customer support. In a side-by-side comparison, the non-contract providers offer lower prices. As of the time of this publication, for unlimited “everything,” Boost Mobile and Cricket charge about $50 and $60 per month, respectively; Verizon and AT T; charge about $90 per month for no contract, unlimited text and voice plans. The customer must pay additional rates for internet access. Verizon recently announced that it is releasing a $50 per month unlimited, no contract plan. But in addition, customers must pay 99 cents per day for internet service and $7 per month for email service, for a combined total of $87 per month for unlimited “everything.”
