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Comcast and Charter Communications are adding wireless customers like hotcakes, and Cox wants a piece of the action
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Cox Mobile came on the scene about a year ago with only one device
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The cable company has since added a host of device options – including the iPhone – and expects fantastic growth
MOBILE WORLD CONGRESS, BARCELONA – Cox Mobile entered the wireless game later than its peers in the cable industry, but it’s already seeing impressive growth and expects that to only get better.
The privately held company isn’t disclosing how many wireless customers it has. It's only been at it for about a year, though.
But according to executives speaking at a Cox-hosted panel Monday evening, they’re expecting terrific growth in 2024 as they explore ways to segment their offerings.
“We had a fantastic first year,” said Tony Krueck, SVP of Cox Mobile. “Operationally, the capabilities were very sound. We didn’t have any big, huge surprises that we had to deal with.”
Cox is offering wireless service under an MVNO arrangement with Verizon, just like larger rivals Charter Communications and Comcast. But its foray into wireless came a little later than planned in part due to a lawsuit with T-Mobile.
Cox originally wanted to do an MVNO deal with Sprint, but changed plans when it saw it could get a better deal with Verizon. T-Mobile, which acquired Sprint, didn’t like that and challenged Cox in court. Last September, the two sides agreed to drop their dispute.
With that in the rearview, Cox is focused on growing its wireless business. Last year at this time, the only device Cox offered was a Samsung model. Since then, they’ve added several others, including phones from Apple, TCL, Motorola and Google.
Looking ahead, “it’s really about driving growth as fast as we can,” Krueck said.
It’s a pretty steep curve. “If I have hair at the end of this year, it will be a good thing,” he quipped. “But it will be like 300 to 400 percent growth that we’re expecting in 2024 versus 2023.”
Stranger danger for kids
Cox recently commissioned a survey to get a better read of how parents and children are faring in the mobile world. The survey revealed some shocking things, according to Krueck.
For example, 31% of parents said their children have been contacted by a stranger on their mobile device and nearly one-third (28%) said the stranger referenced their child’s location. That’s pretty unsettling.
A parent himself, Krueck said kids can come up with some creative ways of making their parents think they’re being safe on their devices and it turns out later – like when they’re older and leave the nest and confess to their younger habits – they’re not being safe at all.
Cox Mobile wants to help parents and kids be safe on their mobile devices. At this stage, it’s studying what can be done to help via educational efforts.
Industry analyst Avi Greengart, principal of Techsponential, attended Cox’s event on Monday night.
Digital safety and management are a key pain point for modern parents, he noted, and while Cox does not have any unique tools, “focusing on education can certainly be helpful.”
As for its overall strategy, Cox Mobile is bundling an MVNO wireless service at a discount for its broadband customers.
“I'm not seeing anything unique about that strategy in terms of the technology, content, or pricing, but it can be an effective offer in its footprint,” Greengart concluded.
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