Sprint teams with Best Buy to offer 1 month of free Sprint Prepaid service

Looking to juice its prepaid subscriber numbers in the fourth quarter, Sprint (NYSE: S) is partnering with Best Buy to offer one month of free Sprint Prepaid service to customers who sign up for the offering in Best Buy stores.

Sprint spokeswoman Jayne Wallace confirmed that the limited-time offer is available at Best Buy stores nationwide. In order to get the free month of service the customer's phone needs to be activated at Best Buy when it is purchased. The offer is valid when customers purchase the LG Tribute, LG Volt, Sharp Crystal, Samsung Galaxy S III or Samsung Galaxy S5, according to Sprint. The offer will run through Jan. 31.

She said the offer is "one of many promotions being offered during the holidays" by different Sprint prepaid brands, including Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile.

According to a Prepaid Phone News article, the offer runs through Jan. 15. Sprint Prepaid, which launched in March, has three plans:

  • $35 per month: unlimited voice, texting and 1 GB of data 
  • $45 per month: unlimited voice, texting and 3 GB of data 
  • $55 per month: unlimited voice, texting and 6 GB of data 

Sprint Prepaid offers off-network voice roaming as part of its plans, unusual among Sprint prepaid plans. However, roaming is capped at just 50 minutes per month.

Additionally, unlike Boost and Virgin, which throttle users' speeds once they exceed their monthly data allotment, Sprint Prepaid plans simply stop providing data when users reach their data cap.

Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure said this month that Sprint is expecting strong December sales thanks to a new promotion Sprint launched last Friday to cut customers' service bill prices in half if they switch from Verizon Wireless (NYSE: VZ) or AT&T Mobility (NYSE: T) and buy a new Sprint phone.

"We're looking for one of the best Decembers Sprint has ever had," Claure said. "I think we sent a very strong message to Verizon and AT&T."

"We are pleased with initial results," Sprint spokesman Mark Elliott told Computerworld, regarding the carrier's "cut your bill in half" promotion. "It's a great deal and demonstrates our commitment to offering consumers the best value in wireless."

For more:
- see this Prepaid Phone News article
- see this Prepaid Reviews article

Related Articles:
Sprint's Claure aims for blowout December thanks to new 'cut your bill in half' promotion
Sprint's Euteneuer boasts of half-off pricing promotion, but analysts predict modest interest
Sprint offers to cut monthly bills in half for Verizon, AT&T customers who switch
Sprint's Claure: 'You ain't seen nothing yet' in terms of value message
Sprint's Boost, Virgin to throttle heavy data users to slower speeds starting in May
Sprint replaces Sprint As You Go with Sprint Prepaid brand: New plans at $45 and $60 for smartphones

Article updated Dec. 11 at 2:45 p.m. ET with additional information from Sprint.