Mobile service provider FreedomPop on Tuesday launched its services in Spain, marking the company’s expansion of free and low cost wireless service into its third country.
Starting immediately, users in Spain can plug a FreedomPop SIM card into their Android or iOS device to receive 200 MBs of data, 100 voice minutes and 300 texts each month at no cost. FreedomPop said it will also offer customers in Spain zero-rated service for any data used on the WhatsApp messaging app.
As a special launch promotion, FreedomPop also said it will offer customers 2 GB of data, unlimited talk and free WhatsApp for the first month of service. The FreedomPop SIM also allows for roaming across 25 countries with no additional fees, including the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Portugal and Italy.
The perks are meant to draw in as many users as possible in Spain, where more than 90 percent of texting is conducted over WhatsApp.
FreedomPop, which previously launched its services in the United States and United Kingdom, said it is hoping to reach 500,000 to 1 million users in Spain within two years. Over 100,000 Spaniards have already signed up for FreedomPop’s beta service, the company said.
FreedomPop said it is also launching a feature that allows users to share mobile data with friends. The company said users will be able to request data from friends with unused capacity or share with those in need. Users will receive an additional 20MBs of free data per month for each FreedomPop friend they have, the company said, giving users the ability to earn unlimited free data.
“We want to provide a path to unlimited free data,” FreedomPOP CEO Stephen Stokols said. “Giving users the option to earn free data as well as get data from friends with extra means they have the opportunity to use as much data as they want and never pay a penny. We already share everything from cars to couches. Now, we can share our mobile data and empower our social networks to get the most value for their money.”
FreedomPop said it plans to continue its international expansion with launches in additional countries by the end of the year.