U.S. Cellular is looking to attract new customers currently on rival networks by offering up to $350 credit to cover any ETFs and has also launched three new contract-free plans starting at $40.
U.S. Cellular, the fifth largest carrier in the U.S., is trying hard to compete with giants like T-Mobile and Sprint. The carrier introduced a trio of no-contract plans and in-store installment plans for customers joining the network. For a limited time, U.S. Cellular is also paying the early termination fees of up to $350 to cover the cost of switching carriers. The change-log also includes renaming its existing Shared Data plans to Shared Connect.
The three new no-contract plans, dubbed as Simple Connect, start as low as $40 per month, which mainly target basic phone users. Under these new plans, users will get unlimited talk, text, and data, without a contract. Smartphone users have two options, $50 a month plan and $60 a month. The latter comes with unlimited everything but with 2GB high-speed data. The $50 plan, on the other hand, offers unlimited talk, text and 500 MB high-speed data.
"At U.S. Cellular, we want to give our customers a best-in-class network along with the plans and devices that give them access to the experiences that make their lives better," Grant Leech, vice president of brand marketing for U.S. Cellular, said in a statement released to Market Wired as a press release, Monday. "These new offerings are designed to give customers freedom and flexibility to choose the right plan for their needs."
Like other carriers in the U.S., including Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular is also offering retail installment contract option. With the new option, subscribers of Simple Connect or Shared Connect can take a new smartphone for $0 down and pay the rest in 24 easy installments. The carrier is also offering up to $350 credit per line, if customers switch from their current carriers to a Shared Connect plan and choose the Retail Installment Contract. The credit will be dispatched as a prepaid debit card once the final bill with the ETF charges is submitted. U.S. Cellular did not mention the last date for the promotion.
The move by U.S. Cellular comes months after T-Mobile started offering switching credits to new customers in January. Sprint also started offering a similar deal last week with credit of up to $650 for switching carriers and trading in old handsets. With the growing competition in the wireless industry, it remains to be seen who will succeed but the end users seem to be having all the advantage.
