Users of the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone will have a new option for wireless services effective this summer. The Virgin Mobile brand from Sprint Corp (NYSE:S) has announced plans to start offering one year of unlimited text, talk and data all for just $1 to customers who will sign up to the program by July and purchase a brand new iPhone at full price.
Additionally, the Sprint unit said it intends to drop all other phones and retail Apple’s devices alone. The move is taken to set Virgin Mobile products aside from the other prepaid brand of Sprint, Boost Mobile plus other competitive wireless companies. The data plan automatically downgrades HD videos to DVD quality in addition to other similar limitations. The plan can significantly slow down the speed of downloading in places that are very congested especially for users who use over 23GB monthly.
The new data plan comes in the wake of heated competition in the wireless market. The increasing competition is working out to the benefit of consumers. In a similar fashion, Sprint offered a full year of free unlimited data to its customers who switched from other carriers. In response, AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) launched low-priced data plans at the start of this year.
Sprint, which acquired patent rights to sell its mobile services under Richard Branson Virgin brand in the U.S, is also aligning its services in line with other Virgin companies globally. Its new mobile customers will be given a free air ticket for a trip to the UK on Virgin Air, a fully paid one-night at Virgin Hotels among other offers.
The new offer will be open for preorders on Thursday at all Apple’s retail stores and on Virgin Mobile’s web site. To qualify for the offer, customers will buy the iPhone 7, 7 Plus, 6S, 6S Plus, or SE. At a later stage, customers who use other iPhones will become eligible to the offer. At the end of the one year promotion period, new customers who sign up will receive six months of free services for $1 together with $50 every month.
