Sprint and Walmart launch no nonsense prepaid service with industry-leading 7-cent minutes and 7-cent text messages ideal for budget-conscious, no-frills customers
WARREN, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Now more than ever, Americans are searching for smart and simple ways to cut unnecessary costs. Sprint (NYSE:S) and Walmart [NASDAQ:WMT] today announced the launch of Common Cents Mobile, the newest member of Sprint’s powerhouse prepaid portfolio with 7-cent minutes that Round Down and 7-cent text messages to provide the greatest value for budget-conscious consumers. The new brand, part of Sprint’s prepaid multi-brand strategy, debuts May 15 exclusively in more than 700 Walmart stores in markets such as Birmingham, Ala., Detroit, Houston, Orlando, Fla., and more.
“In recent months, consumers seeking no-frills, pay-by-the-minute plans have been somewhat overlooked with the popularity of unlimited plans in the market,” said Dan Schulman, president of Sprint’s prepaid group. “These customers want to stay connected — to a point — but don’t want to waste time or money on services they don’t use. The addition of Common Cents combines easy-to-use handsets with a simple pay-by-the-minute service that can save them money.”
Unlimited monthly plans without contracts helped re-energize the prepaid business last year but pay-by-the-minute customers still represent the majority [63 percent] of prepaid market share, and almost half [49 percent] of prepaid gross adds.1
Unique new features
Round Down – Exclusive to Common Cents Mobile, Round Down minutes offer straight-forward pricing as consumers pay only for what they use – or less. The concept is simple: other carriers round up to the nearest whole minute; if you talk, for example, for 1 minute and 46 seconds, you will pay for 2 minutes for the call.
But Common Cents will “Round Down” your call of 1:46 minutes to 1 minute, allowing consumers to pay for less than what they actually use. With minutes that Round Down after the first minute, not up, consumers get more minutes for their money.
Handsets – Common Cents Mobile offers handsets with simple, basic functions – voicemail, text messaging, caller ID – that appeal to cost-conscious consumers. The easy-to-use, affordable and stylish units are priced to highlight the 7-cent-minute pricing and include the LG101® priced at just $19.77, the Samsung® M340 at $39.77, and the Kyocera® S2300 for $69.77.
Offers – Developed for consumers who seek ease and simplicity, Common Cents Mobile lets customers activate and add money to their account with two service options:
* $20 Refill card = 30 days of service, up to 565 minutes of talk
* $30 Refill card = 60 days of service, up to 848 minutes of talk
Consumers may also add unlimited messaging for $20 per month and data access for $1/megabyte per day. Adding to monthly balances is accomplished by buying Refill cards or by registering a credit or debit card or PayPal account online at CommonCentsMobile.com. With Common Cents Mobile, there are no activation or termination fees and no long-term contracts.
As part of the launch, Common Cents Mobile will introduce a new regional ad campaign and “jingle” that speaks to turning back to a simpler time, like the Common Cents Mobile plans.
Handsets and Refill cards will be available beginning May 15 at select Walmart locations. For more information or to locate a Walmart store that carries Common Cents Mobile, please visit the store locator.
