T-Mobile CEO: Our message, not the iPhone, caused surge in customers

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
According to CEO John Legere, T-Mobile has its own messaging to thank for the surge in customers and customer retention it experienced last quarter, not the arrival of Apple's iPhone on its network.



After T-Mobile released its second quarter earnings showing a total of 1.1 million net customer additions, many were quick to attribute that growth to the U.S.' fourth-largest carrier finally getting Apple's iPhone near the beginning of that quarter. Last week saw the release of a study saying that the iPhone helped T-Mobile retained 400,000 customers that would otherwise have left the carrier.

Legere, though, is not so quick to attribute the company's success to just one Apple device. Speaking with AllThingsD on Thursday, Legere credited T-Mobile's message and service offerings as the reason for the apparent turnaround. Arriving alongside the iPhone was T-Mobile's new "Un-carrier" initiative, which has customers paying the cost of their phone and then seeing their monthly wireless bills dropping in price.

T-Mobile has also introduced an early upgrade program for customers. That plan was quickly imitated by both Verizon and AT&T.

These moves appear to be paying off for the telecom. Seven hundred thousand customers have signed up for the early upgrade program since it was announced. Also, T-Mobile's growth appears to be outpacing its rivals.

The iPhone accounted for 21 percent of T-Mobile's smartphone sales in the last quarter, and executives at the carrier appear to like that figure.

"I think it's a healthy percentage," Legere told AllThingsD.

The future will also likely see the carrier pushing even more Apple products beyond the iPhone. Legere was not specific in his remarks, but he seemed on Thursday to confirm that more Apple products, possibly including Wi-Fi+Cellular iPads, will be on their way to T-Mobile.

?I think there?s a whole array of Apple products that we look forward to carrying,? Legere said. ?We will expand what we offer from them.?
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 30
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,801member


    Yeah, I'm sure it was that. They didn't need the iPhone anyways! image

  • Reply 2 of 30
    trd105trd105 Posts: 13member
    Man I wish T-Mobile's network wasn't non existent in my area. I really like their UN-Carrier plan they're doing.
  • Reply 3 of 30
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,801member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by trd105 View Post



    Man I wish T-Mobile's network wasn't non existent in my area. I really like their UN-Carrier plan they're doing.


     


    Thats just the issue with T-Mobile. They're coverage sucks. They're still 2G here where I live. Everyone else is 4G LTE. Unless you live in a city you're screwed. I used to be on T-Mobile with an few Android phones and their coverage was never stellar. 

  • Reply 4 of 30
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    According to CEO John Legere, T-Mobile has its own messaging to thank for the surge in customers and customer retention it experienced last quarter, not the arrival of Apple's iPhone on its network.

    "Okay. We'll just take it away from you and see how well you do. Toodles!"

    –Tim Cook.
  • Reply 5 of 30
    mudman2mudman2 Posts: 54member
    Whats he smoking ?
  • Reply 6 of 30
    disturbiadisturbia Posts: 563member


    Hey, he needs his annual bonus and job security too! LOL

  • Reply 7 of 30
    According to CEO John Legere, T-Mobile has its own messaging to thank for the surge in customers and customer retention it experienced last quarter, not the arrival of Apple's iPhone on its network.

    Umm... yeah... right...
  • Reply 8 of 30
    tokyojimutokyojimu Posts: 528member
    I too wish I could switch. But there's no way I'll put up with their (lack of) coverage. Whenever I'm with friends and they say they have No Service, I say "T-Mobile, right?" and inevitably the answer is "How'd you know!"
  • Reply 9 of 30
    I dont know where you guys are at but here in Brooklyn tmobile service is smoking :)
  • Reply 10 of 30
    rash12rash12 Posts: 7member


    Well, T-mobile is right in one way that un-carrier did help people move to t-mobile like me. But, also supporting iphone has helped t-mobile indirectly because when I moved from ATT, I had 2 iphone on my 4-line family plan with ATT. so, t-mobile new customer surge is a combination of their un-carrier simple choice 4-line $100 plan plus a support of GSM iphone with 1900Mhz migration.

  • Reply 11 of 30
    adonissmuadonissmu Posts: 1,776member
    People want to live in the woods where the government has to subsidize the coverage they do get and they gripe about paying a higher price. Live in a place where its profitable to have affordable high speed phone service.
  • Reply 12 of 30
    hampyhampy Posts: 1member
    I had a long hard day at work ... It sure is great to come home, take a shower, have dinner, relax, and then sit back for a good laugh. Thanks Mr. Legere!
  • Reply 13 of 30


    Technically he's right, it was their message... the message that they were getting the iPhone.

  • Reply 14 of 30
    dreyfus2dreyfus2 Posts: 1,072member
    I am in my 48th year of trying to figure out what the lyrics in 'Desolation Row" mean... But, at least, there seems to be a meaning there. :smokey:
  • Reply 15 of 30


    I'm a new T-Mobile customer, and the ONLY reason I'm with them is because they got the iPhone.  "Un-Carrier" helped, but iPhone sealed the deal, that's for sure.

  • Reply 16 of 30

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Hampy View Post



    I had a long hard day at work ... It sure is great to come home, take a shower, have dinner, relax, and then sit back for a good laugh. Thanks Mr. Legere!


    You are so right. I started my work day getting ready to scroll down to pick something for Safari to read for me while I worked. I saw this and burst out laughing.


     


    iPhone and the "Un-Carrier" helped the bleeding to stop. If it was their message by itself, then they could have rolled out the "Un-Carrier" on Android with out the iPhone. LOL

  • Reply 17 of 30
    That message being, of course: "We have the iPhone!"
  • Reply 18 of 30
    chris_cachris_ca Posts: 2,543member
    These moves appear to be paying off for the telecom. Seven hundred thousand customers have signed up for the early upgrade program since it was announced. Also, T-Mobile's growth appears to be outpacing its rivals.
    At $10 a month per customer, nothing to sneeze at...
  • Reply 19 of 30
    ipilyaipilya Posts: 195member
    I held off on making my iPhone purchase for the T-Mobile Un-Carrier plan... I was willing to take the hit in network availability for the sake of having a somewhat low cost (By American Standards) unlimited plan. So it one way, I can see where he is right. But on the flip side, I would not have gone this route if they did not have the iPhone.
  • Reply 20 of 30
    tbelltbell Posts: 3,146member


    LOL. That is funny. 


     


    I tell you what as a T-Mobile customer I was pissed after it changed its original pricing around after a month. I was going to get an iPhone 5 on my birthday approximately a month after it was first offered. Without warning, however, it upped the price. 

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