While AT&T (nee cingular) is riding high on the back of the iPhone, Sprint has started it’s slow death march. As a Sprint customer for the last 8 years I have always come to expect my cell phone is exactly that, a cell phone with reasonably good coverage. I never looked to Sprint for innovation, it’s Sprint Vision services are annoying and completely useless (other than texting which means you have to pay the PCS Vision fee), and their phones are mediocre and expensive. (I use another company for GSM based data services for the Treo). Yes it does roam internationally and I have used it internationally exactly twice for emergencies (my preferred method is a local SIM card). As for the PCS system, as much as the carriers would like you to think, the PCS system will be marginalized in favor of the overwhelming popular GSM system (over 80% of the world uses GSM). So it comes as no surprise that the analysts inside of Sprint have decided that they are going to boot customers that they consider undesirable; firstly from a customer who had the temerity to ring Sprint to get her phone bill fixed; Now canceling military customers because they roam too much. Sprint Chairman and CEO (for now) Gary Forsee is taking “A Deer in the Headlights” approach to the Apple iPhone by saying:
We’ve been anticipating, as the industry has, the coming of the iPhone,” Sprint Chief Executive Gary Forsee acknowledged. Added Strigl: “I think they will have a good product. So I don’t deny them that.”
Nonetheless, rival operators and handset makers have expressed skepticism about whether the iPhone will truly shake up a wireless market in which the vast majority of consumers pay less than $100 for the handsets they own.
They point to the iPhone’s $500 starting price tag and note that consumers would also have to sign up for more costly monthly plans.
“It’s an expensive device,” Forsee said. “If the customer is buying that for music, then we’re going to be able to provide very significant alternatives to that at a much cheaper price point.”
So Sprint will offer a cut rate phone with a cut rate experience, this has never been a winning strategy. The issue is for Sprint is that they are going to chose alternatives from AT&T. The iPhone in this case is acting as a halo product. Sprint is quickly losing relevance in the marketplace with outdated technology, poor management and leadership and poor executive of the Nextel merger. According to Fitch Ratings:
The Outlook remains Negative reflecting Fitch’s concerns over the uncertainty and execution risks associated with Sprint Nextel improving its core operations, including the company’s competitive position despite an increasingly challenging environment. Longer term, Fitch believes the company faces significant technology and execution risk surrounding the migration of its iDEN subscriber base to CDMA and the implementation of its WiMAX strategy.
These incidents all point towards poor leadership as Sprint continues to struggle against much stronger competition. So why do I still have a Sprint phone?. Good Question….now where can I get an iPhone?
