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The prepaid battle between Sprint Nextel's Virgin Mobile and T-Mobile just got a little uglier.
Virgin Mobile says it offers the best smartphone value out of any carrier, and positions the Motorola Triumph as one of its primary arguments.
(Credit:CNET/Bonnie Cha)
T-Mobile and its ever-present spokeswoman, Carly, were the targets of a new commercial from Virgin, which argues that it offers the best value for a smartphone customer looking to avoid long-term service contracts.
The advertisement underscores the growing importance of the prepaid wireless business for the national carriers, which traditionally generated a bulk of their revenue with contract customers. As both Sprint and T-Mobile have struggled with the so-called postpaid segment, they have looked to add more prepaid customers. As a result, the two are beginning to butt heads.
Both Sprint and T-Mobile reported strong prepaid numbers. Sprint added 674,000 net new prepaid subscribers--with Virgin Mobile a contributor to that total, while T-Mobile added 231,000 net customers despite another ugly quarter for postpaid losses.
The move also comes as the industry figures out just how much growth is left in the prepaid business, with many of the traditional providers such as MetroPCS and Leap Wireless reporting disappointing results in the second quarter.
The prepaid business, which generally attracts lower income and credit customers, has been using smartphones to keep their growth going. CNET editor Jessica Dolcourt recently took a look at the smartphone line-ups for the various prepaid carriers, and found Virgin with the highest percentage of smartphone users at 30%. She also noted that it had the strongest selection among the tier-two carriers.
Dolcourt also noted that the Motorola Triumph was a real winner among options for prepaid customers.
T-Mobile, however, has moved to offer all of its phones without a contract, and has cut the price of its smartphone data plans to compete at the low end of the market.
Virgin offers a $55-a-month plan with unlimited calling, data messaging, and Internet access. T-Mobile offers a similar plan for $59.99 a month. Both throttle excessive data users.
Virgin is attempting to halt T-Mobile's momentum. Its advertisement points out the "depressing" and sparse look of the trademark all-white T-Mobile commercials, which opens up to a scene at a nightclub--falling perfectly into the demographic that the youth-friendly provider is targeting.
The commercial also reminds consumers that T-Mobile will likely be swallowed up by AT&T, and warned of a potential drop in customer service.
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Virgin Mobile says it offers the best smartphone value out of any carrier, and positions the Motorola Triumph as one of its primary arguments.(Credit:CNET/Bonnie Cha)
T-Mobile and its ever-present spokeswoman, Carly, were the targets of a new commercial from Virgin, which argues that it offers the best value for a smartphone customer looking to avoid long-term service contracts.
The advertisement underscores the growing importance of the prepaid wireless business for the national carriers, which traditionally generated a bulk of their revenue with contract customers. As both Sprint and T-Mobile have struggled with the so-called postpaid segment, they have looked to add more prepaid customers. As a result, the two are beginning to butt heads.
Both Sprint and T-Mobile reported strong prepaid numbers. Sprint added 674,000 net new prepaid subscribers--with Virgin Mobile a contributor to that total, while T-Mobile added 231,000 net customers despite another ugly quarter for postpaid losses.
The move also comes as the industry figures out just how much growth is left in the prepaid business, with many of the traditional providers such as MetroPCS and Leap Wireless reporting disappointing results in the second quarter.
The prepaid business, which generally attracts lower income and credit customers, has been using smartphones to keep their growth going. CNET editor Jessica Dolcourt recently took a look at the smartphone line-ups for the various prepaid carriers, and found Virgin with the highest percentage of smartphone users at 30%. She also noted that it had the strongest selection among the tier-two carriers.
Dolcourt also noted that the Motorola Triumph was a real winner among options for prepaid customers.
T-Mobile, however, has moved to offer all of its phones without a contract, and has cut the price of its smartphone data plans to compete at the low end of the market.
Virgin offers a $55-a-month plan with unlimited calling, data messaging, and Internet access. T-Mobile offers a similar plan for $59.99 a month. Both throttle excessive data users.
Virgin is attempting to halt T-Mobile's momentum. Its advertisement points out the "depressing" and sparse look of the trademark all-white T-Mobile commercials, which opens up to a scene at a nightclub--falling perfectly into the demographic that the youth-friendly provider is targeting.
The commercial also reminds consumers that T-Mobile will likely be swallowed up by AT&T, and warned of a potential drop in customer service.
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