If enough people switch - the others will have to make some changes in order to stay competitive. He's not suggesting that we all pledge loyalty to t-mobile until the end of time.
As far as I am concerned that is worthy of loyalty, and I intend to remain with them unless they change their behaviour - even if not the absolute cheapest.
Bizarre that them doing what they said they would should surprise me and engender loyalty ofc, but it did. Just my 2 cents.
(Which is quite funny, 'cause I have to pay 0.11€ / minute for calling to other german carriers.)
There is certainly nothing smart about paying seventy, eighty, or more, per month for a smart phone. If anyone is smart its the guys charging for it and getting it.
This was my realization when pricing out basic phone service with T-Mobile, ATT, etc. You have to really work hard to pay different. Just don't be afraid to break the contract, it's not a real penalty.
If you calculate the costs over a 2 year span, the differences are quite significant: http://jots.mypopescu.com/post/61007400356/iphone-5s-choosin...
_nb_: I haven't included any interest/depreciation rates though.
The trick is that most people don't replace their phones on a schedule. Some phones don't hold enough of a charge after 18 months and get replaced early; some people are still happy with their 4 year old phone. If you are on a pay-as-you-go plan and hold onto a phone for longer than 2 years, the savings start to really add up.
The other trick is that many people can get pay-as-you-go prices on contract, through their corporation, credit union, or university. When I was on AT&T in 2009, I used my university's alumni association to bring my cost down to $55 per month.
I just went to Verizon and chose a free SmartPhone (Droid 4) with a 500MB data plan. It was $80/mo 2 yr contract
I can buy that phone outright (brand new) for $300.
If I go to PagePlus (Verizon MVNO) and sign up for their $1200 Minute, $3000 Text/MMS 500MB $30/mo plan here is what I paid after two years.
Verizon - $80 * 24 = $1,920
PagePlus - $30 * 24 + $300 (phone) + $50 roaming (average usage cost for 2 yrs) = $1,020
And what did I get for my $900 difference? (That is $37.50/mo BTW) A big "Verizon" label on my phone, and a two year contract.
You could get two plans and phones from PagePlus and still pay less.
I realize that there are other factors like level of customer service, and no roaming charges that VZW and ATT die-hards will tell you about. Well, in my experience, the service is no better and most people almost never use roaming service while using a Verizon MVNO. I would say that i have only spent around $20 in the last two years from roaming.
Other factiods: Have Verizon or ATT and want to change your plan options (Minutes, Data amount ETC)? Sure - that will require a new two year contract. Don't want a new phone. Well you will still be paying the same regardless. Break the contract and you will still pay the same penalty. This seems to refute your claim that you are just paying back a subsidy.
Want a new phone with your new contract? OK, choose a "free" one from a list whose retail prices have a $150-$200 difference in price. Are you going to pay less per month if you opt for the cheaper (3g) free one? If your statement was true you should.
Knowing that I'm going to be travelling a fair amount in the near future on business, I'm not sure if it'd be worth gambling that the host network for my MVNO wouldn't be similarly over capacity elsewhere resulting in me getting lower priority.
The usa was 5 years behind the eu in forcing contracts, so yes this is just another marketing gimmick. classic bait & switch tactic. all of the carriers forced contracts after they bought out the regional mobile providers during the decade 1995-2005.
At one point AT&T tried to buy T-Mobile, citing Verizon being bigger as why it was okay. They even put a bunch of money on the line if it fell through. Regulators decided that either they wanted 4 parties, or that Verizon would be forced to buy Sprint to compete, leaving 2 parties. (I am not 100% certain which they said was the reason)
All they are waiting for is the DOJ to make a mistake and let it slip through.
"T-Mobile exeutives say Sprint merger the 'logical conclusion'" http://www.theverge.com/2013/9/25/4769794/t-mobile-executive...
"Sprint executives echo T-Mobile merger message" http://www.kansascity.com/2013/09/26/4509601/sprint-executiv...
And I agree, Deutsche Telekom in Germany is awful and incompetent when it comes to customer service. If only their network weren’t so goddamn great … (It feels like a reversal of the situation in the US: Their technology is great and they are very competent at building their infrastructure – but how they treat customers is the exact opposite of that. And when I say technology I mean the network, not the technology they use to interface with customers. Stupid story time: Recently, after changing some notification SMS setting online, I got an e-mail thanking me for my change in contract and telling me that my monthly fee is €50, not the €50 minus €10 online ordering discount I knew I got when I entered into the contract. When calling their support hotline I was told that their system is apparently unable to display individual discounts on any and all communication with the customer except the monthly bill. The support agent also told me that I wasn’t the first person to call him because of that …)
Amusingly, you just described VZW in the United States. Fantastic network, absolutely awful at dealing with their customers.
In Croatia, T-Mobile is absolutely the worst carrier. Highest fees, worst customer support. They can get away with it because they have the most customers and it's just too much of a hassle to change providers.
At least that's how it was around 3 years ago. I don't live there anymore so maybe something changed (I doubt it).
It is interesting how even huge corporations like Telekom adjust their marketing and overall strategy depending on their market position. I like how they handle their role as an underdog in the US, but I'm not under any illusions. This isn't a grand gesture of goodwill, but a necessary evil in their eyes, I guess.
No, if all people move to T-Mobile, they will just start behaving like the other carriers. The only reasons they're customer friendly is because they have a low market share and try to win customers, not because it's their company culture. Just look at their German parent company, Deutsche Telekom is the German AT&T.