The pay-in-advance, no-contract model is the future of wireless, said Tom Keys, Chief Operating Officer for MetroPCS.
In the company’s quarterly financial conference call, Keys said MetroPCS continues to attract users looking for alternatives to long-term commitments. An internal survey by the company found that approximately 1/3 of our new gross additions were previously contracted wireless subscribers. As the first U.S. carrier to launch LTE services, MetroPCS opted to continue offering monthly service plans with no annual contract required.
Keys said the initial LTE networks are performing well and that early subscribers are responding positively. In Q4, the company plans to launch multiple Android devices. Additionally, in early 2011, MetroPCS expects to introduce its first 4G LTE Android smartphone.
MetroPCS, which operates a CDMA network, bypassed 3G EVDO in favor of 4G LTE. The company is looking ahead to migrate its voice traffic to the new network using VOLTE (voice-over-LTE) and anticipates launching a trial of this technology during the first half of 2011. Converging voice and data over the same LTE network should be more efficient over time.
http://www.metropcs.com
