In an effort to lure more new customers and regain market share, Sprint (NYSE: S) said it will reimburse all of the costs for a customer to switch over, including their Early Termination Fees and any remaining payments on equipment installment plans, no matter what customers owe.
According to Sprint, switching customers will need to trade in their phone to Sprint from their current carrier if they have an ETF or EIP balance remaining. Then, customers need to activate a Sprint device on Sprint Easy Pay, the carrier's iPhone for Life Plan, Sprint Lease or pay full retail price with a new line of service, subject to credit approval. Customers also need to complete an online registration at www.sprint.com/joinsprint and upload a bill that shows applicable charges for reimbursement within 60 days of their new phone activation.
Sprint will pay out the costs of switching via an American Express Reward Card. Sprint will refund the switching costs within 15 days of the customer successfully completing the online registration and providing a bill that shows the early termination charge or device balance due.
Sprint spokeswoman Kristin Wallace said the new offer from Sprint is a limited-time offer but that the company has not set an end date.
Sprint is still offering to cut the service bill in half of customers who switch from AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T) and Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ). However, Sprint executives have said that when prospective customers from Verizon and AT&T come into Sprint stores they often find that Sprint's plans are actually cheaper than their bills would be if they were just cut in half. Sprint originally intended to end that offer in January but decided to keep it going through all of 2015, so it is possible the company could do the same for the new offer.
The new Sprint offer comes just days before T-Mobile US (NYSE:TMUS) is expected to announce a new "uncarrier" initiative, which is expected to be geared toward business users.
In the fourth quarter, Sprint made progress on its subscriber figures. Sprint said its added 30,000 net postpaid customers to its core CDMA and LTE networks, dubbed the "Sprint platform," up from a loss of 272,000 in the third quarter but down from 58,000 a year ago. The company reported Sprint platform prepaid net additions of 410,000, up 88,000 year-over-year due to growth in the Boost brand.
Sprint is clearly trying to keep the momentum going in the first quarter. "We will continue to focus on marketing programs that deliver a clear simple and powerful message to potential customers," Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure said on the company's last quarterly earnings conference call in early February, according to a Seeking Alpha transcript. "We intend to continue our successful Cut Your Bill offers through 2015 and we will be aggressive in delivering that message to the market."
For more:
- see this release
- see this Sprint page
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