Following a rocky earnings report from parent company AT&T in which prepaid net additions were a highlight, the carrier’s prepaid vehicle Cricket announced it’s adding more data to its plans for the same dime.
According to a press release, customers on Cricket’s $40 per month plan will now have access to 3 GB of data instead of 2.5 GB, and users on the $60 per month plan will get two additional gigabytes for a total of 12 GB. Cricket said it was also locking in its offer of 8 GB of data on its $50 per month plan – which was first offered as a promotion in October – as a new official price.
Alongside the new plans, Cricket is offering a slate of free and discounted smartphones for customers who bring their number to Cricket. Free devices include the Alcatel Streak, Samsung Galaxy Amp 2, ZTE Sonata 3, and LG Spree, while discounted devices include the LG Escape 3, the Samsung Galaxy Amp Prime, LG X Power, and LG Stylo 2. The phones are offered at a smaller discount to upgraders and new lines of service as well.
The move marks another strategic hit at major prepaid competitor T-Mobile, which offers a 3 GB plan for $40 per month, a 5 GB plan for $50 per month, and a 10 GB plan for $60 per month.
Though Cricket has proved to be a strong growth engine for AT&T – helping bring in 406,000 prepaid phone subscribers in the fourth quarter – the brand’s success has been overshadowed by that of T-Mobile’s prepaid offerings. In the holiday quarter, T-Mobile said it raked in 541,000 branded prepaid net additions with prepaid churn of just 3.94 percent.
Filed Under: Carriers
