T-Mobile US Inc (NYSE:TMUS) is the smallest of the US’ main mobile phone carriers, but it certainly is not the smallest in terms of subscriber growth. The network has reported it has acquired post paid subscriptions from 1.3 million new customers as of the fourth quarter, with 1 million of the new subscribers being on the mobile phone business. The company previously reported 1.4 million additional postpaid subscriptions in the third quarter. Net additional subscribers for the fourth quarter is 2.1 million overall, and the total addition for the year is 8.3 million.
Taking the new subscribers puts T-Mobile US Inc (NYSE:TMUS)’s subscriber base at more than 55 million. Third quarter reports indicate a subscriber base of 52.9 million. On the other hand, Sprint Communications Inc, T-Mobile’s closest rival, have 55 million subscribers by third quarter. T-Mobile is widely noted for its “un-carrier” marketing strategy in winning new customers. The strategy includes doing away with monthly contracts and waiving additional costs for customers who are on international data roaming. It is also intent on adding new features to the carrier program, the most recent plan of which is to allow customers with unused data to rollover such data for use within the year. With AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) data that have been rolled-over expires after one month.
John Legere, the president and CEO of T-Mobile US Inc (NYSE:TMUS), have written in a blog post that “T-Mobile will officially become the No. 3 wireless company in America in 2015.” On the other hand, CEO Lowell McAdam of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) admitted at an investor conference in Las Vegas that the company is indeed losing customers, but that he is satisfied with the quality of their base customers.
Despite the growth in subscribers, however, T-Mobile US Inc (NYSE:TMUS) has been at the center of criticisms alleging that it focuses too much on subscriber growth but not profitability. Third quarter results reported a loss of 12 cents per share, with a revenue of $7.35 billion, a noticeable lag behind analysts expectations of $7.44 billion. News of growth in subscribers, however, sent its stock up, currently at 1.38 percent or $28.25 per share.
This article has been written by Nonito Guntan.
