Skip to main content

T-Mobile Racks Up Pre-Paid Subscribers

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Mobile operators have been struggling to shore up their financials as tough economic times see consumers cutting back on mobile phone service and extras in order to make their dollars go further—even as consumer interest in smartphones is stronger than ever. Number four U.S. mobile operator T-Mobile seems to have been able to capitalize on consumers’ desire to save money, announcing that they picked up 371,000 mobile users during the fourth quarter, reversing subscriber losses during the third quarter—and a good deal of that surge comes from pre-paid subscribers accessing T-Mobile services without a contract.

“T-Mobile USA made significant progress in 2009 in expanding its 3G network, improving its 3G-capable device lineup, enhancing its distribution, and underscoring its value proposition,” said Deutsche Telekom CEO René Obermann, in a statement. “This creates a solid foundation to benefit from the robust mobile Internet market.”

Overall, T-Mobile claimed some 33.8 million customers at the end of 2009, up from 33.4 million at the end of the third quarter and 32.9 million at the end of the fourth quarter of 2008—although T-Mobile isn’t gaining customers as fast as market leader Verizon, it at least is no longer losing subscribers (like Sprint). However, the total number of people subscribing to T-Mobile service on contact is actually declining: at the end of 2009, about 79 percent of T-Mobile’s customer base was on contract; that compared to 80 percent at the end of the third quarter of 2009 and 82 percent a year ago. Overall T-Mobile’s revenue for the quarter was $5.41 billion, down from $5.72 billion a year ago—and the primary reason for the decline is as a net decline in the average amount customers are paying the company per month.

Industry reports have speculated that T-Mobile owner Deutsche Telekom is considering an IPO for T-Mobile to help raise money to expand the carrier’s 3G and HSPA+ network infrastructure; neither company has commented publicly on the possibility of an IPO.

Geoff Duncan
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…
Don’t pre-order the Samsung Galaxy S24 at Amazon
A person holding the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra using the Circle to Search feature.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 line of smartphones has been announced, and time is running out to get a pre-order. The phone is officially available January 30, so these phone deals are only available for another day. One of the more tantalizing and obvious offers is at Amazon, where you can get a $50, $150 or $200 Amazon gift card when you buy the S24, S24+ and S24 Ultra, respectively. Sounds like free money, right? Maybe, but there's a better deal on Samsung's site. Let's break it down.

Why you should pre-order the Samsung Galaxy S24 at Samsung
Buy something from the Samsung Galaxy S24 range and you’re scoring one of the best phones out there. That’s going to be good at any price but why not save even more by buying through Samsung?

Read more
The T-Mobile Tuesdays app is about to get a big upgrade
A screenshot of the T-Mobile Tuesdays app, showing a promo for the new T Life app.

T-Mobile is a consistent leader in the ongoing 5G race, and to kick off 2024 on an interesting note, the carrier has announced that a big change is coming to its T-Mobile Tuesdays app. In short, the app is going away — and in its place, a new one is launching soon.

If you open the T-Mobile Tuesdays app today, January 2, you'll see a card that says "Introducing T Life." Below that is additional text that describes T Life as "a new app for T-Mobile Tuesdays."

Read more
T-Mobile still has the fastest 5G, but its rivals are catching up
T-Mobile smartphone.

For most of 2023, we’ve seen median 5G speeds among the big three carriers remain fairly stable, leading us to believe that things were beginning to reach a plateau. However, it now seems that this may only be true at the very top end of the 5G speed race.

Today, Ookla released its latest market research on 5G speeds for the third quarter of 2023, and it’s an interesting mix of surprising and not-so-surprising developments in the 5G market.

Read more