New plan extends payments over 30 months
Apple’s iPhone lineup continues to be a main focus for Sprint’s recently installed CEO Marcelo Claure, with the operator again tweaking its device-specific iPhone for Life Plan.
The carrier unveiled a new 30-month lease option, which drops the per-month charge for both the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus models to as low as $18 per month. Customers can still select either of the carrier’s 12-month or 24-month options as well.
As part of the lease plan, customers do not put any money down and just make the monthly payments over the term of the deal. The device price is also tied to a single rate plan that offers unlimited domestic calling, messaging and data service for $50 per month on the 24-month and 30-month lease deal, or $60 per month on the 12-month lease deal.
At the end of the lease, customers can choose to turn in their current device on a new iPhone model; pay the remaining balance on their current iPhone and keep it; continue leasing on a month-to-month basis; or return their device and terminate their service.
Since launching the plan with the 24-month leasing option to coincide with the launch of the latest iPhone models, Sprint has repeatedly tweaked the iPhone-specific offering, first with the 12-month option followed by the latest extension. Sprint earlier this month added Apple’s tablets to the leasing option, with Claure touting the financial sense for consumers of the leasing model, stating it makes sense to lease items that depreciate, like “cars or like cellphones.”
Claure noted at an investor conference earlier this month that Sprint planned to remain aggressive on pricing, with plans to add a number of initiatives before the end of the year.
“I can tell you that you ain’t seen nothing yet,” Claure said at the Wells Fargo Technology, Media and Telecom Conference. “I can tell you that the next two or three weeks are going to be extremely exciting. … I’ve seen some advertising by competitors that bothers me, when they use the words best pricing ever or stuff like that, but if your consumer uses them, you actually think it is the best pricing everywhere and you’re overspending. So we are going to make it a very clear point and you will see why we are going to be the leader in pricing for now.”
Sprint has aggressively targeted the market since Claure was installed as CEO in early August. In addition to the iPhone and leasing programs, the carrier has remodeled its family plans and offered up new individual plans based on unlimited services.
In reporting mixed second fiscal quarter results earlier this month, Sprint’s management made note that it witnessed strong momentum coming out of the latest quarter, including a 37% month-over-month increase in postpaid phone gross additions; a 60% slowdown in postpaid phone net losses; and its most successful new iPhone launch in its history.
Despite the rosy outlook, financial analysts remained cautious.
“With the company now tightly controlled by a single shareholder (Softbank) and with the replacement of the CEO, it just might be possible for this company to turn the corner in an increasingly competitive environment,” explained Canaccord Genuity financial analyst Greg Miller. “However, one thing should be clear by now. We believe investors should wait until it’s clear the still-evolving strategy is sustainable rather than speculating as so many have.”
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