Wireless Carriers

Wireless carriers (mobile network operators) are the organizations that provide mobile phones and value-added services. The carriers provide you with the ability to make and receive phone calls, send and receive text messages, access the mobile Web, take and share pictures, find driving directions, and do so much more — all from your mobile phone. Not all wireless carriers are alike; they come in all shapes and sizes. This list describes the three types of wireless carriers:

- National: Offer retail and commercial services throughout the country. The United States alone has more than 50 wireless carriers; worldwide, there are hundreds. The largest national carriers are AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless. These carriers serve a little over 90 percent of the mobile subscribers in the United States and have the most advanced high-speed networks, handsets, and services offerings. If you travel to other cities or regions often, national carriers are your best route for going mobile. Also, if your business associates and friends are all over the country, national carriers offer very good in-network service plans to connect with people on other networks with reduced rates.

- Regional: Operate their services within a limited locale and region — for example, Alltel, Cincinnati Bell, Leap Wireless, and U.S. Cellular. These carriers offer limited coverage by region and usually have very good networks, handsets, and value-added services in order to compete with the national carriers. If your travel is limited to your tri-state area or city, then regional carriers offer great service plans to keep the national carriers away from their local customer base.

- Third-party, or mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs): Lease their mobile networks (cell towers, radio spectrum, and infrastructure, for example) from one or more wireless carriers. Virgin Mobile, for example (which leases its network access from Sprint) offers unique branded services to target youth demographic and customer segments. Helio, another MVNO provider in the United States, delivers high-speed, madefor- mobile network service based on similar services offered in Korea by its parent company, SK Telecom. Most MVNOs use national carrier networks, so their networks and services are as good as the national carriers. MVNOs usually cater to niche markets — like the youth market or culturally distinct markets, for example — with unique highly targeted offerings.

Being able to distinguish between the different types of wireless carriers is important because their features — network quality, phone models, service and support, and cost — vary greatly across carrier networks and regions. For example, some wireless carriers support data services, and others do not. If you want access to all the great mobile Internet products and services available — be sure to sign with a carrier that offers the suite of services to best meet your needs.

Some factors to consider when selecting a mobile carrier are the types of phones they offer, the applications, services, and content they offer, their plans and costs, the quality of the coverage, the quality of their customer services and existing customer satisfaction ratings, to name just a few. You may find, for example, that an MVNO or regional carrier provides services that fit your needs, so be sure to look at these when choosing a carrier. To find out about the other wireless carriers in the United States, check out the carrier links on the CTIA—Wireless Association Web site: www.ctia. org/membership/ctia-members.

To find out about the wireless carriers in the rest of the world, visit the GSM Association Web site: www.gsmworld.com. Click the GSM Roaming link to find coverage maps and a geographically organized list of more than 600 wireless carriers globally.

If you ever need to move your business to a different wireless carrier, feel free to keep your phone number. Local number portability (see the nearby sidebar) lets you take your number with you to any mobile carrier you choose.

When you’re choosing a wireless carrier and a type of phone to buy, keep these questions in mind:

- Will you call people? If so, who?

- Which mobile Internet products and services do you want — text messaging, browsing, games, pictures, music, e-mail, and instant messaging (from either personal or corporate accounts)?

- Will you access the mobile Web or use other applications and services offered by your wireless carrier or third-party companies?

The answer to these questions determines the type of phone you should buy and the plan and services you should sign up for. It is always good to get a rough idea of what you are looking for when subscribing to a wireless carrier before you walk in to their retail outlet or shop online. You save time and money by getting the right mobile phone and service programs tailored to your needs. Doing a little upfront research helps you avoid making a compulsive buy.

When choosing your wireless carrier and the contract for services, do your homework before signing up. You should know exactly what your contract says about these issues:

- Adding and dropping service options during the life of your contract: Adding and dropping services shouldn’t cost you extra. If your wireless carrier charges you a fee, choose a different carrier.

- Try-before-you-buy promotions: It never hurts to ask for one, two, or even three months of free access to try a wireless carrier’s mobile Internet service offerings or bundles. Most are flexible and can give you a couple of months to try a new service.

• If no promotions are available: Make sure that no penalties apply if you want to try the service for a few months and then decide to stop it.

• If promotions are available: Make sure that you know exactly what is included and what happens after the promotion expires.

If you’re buying a new phone along with service, you can often negotiate a discount on your phone. Try to get a few months of free service or access to one more services and features that may be offered. If you’re replacing an existing phone, recycle it! It’s not only good for the environment; you can get some cash back for it or a tax deduction. There are a variety of phone recycling businesses. Collective Good at www.collective good.com is a good example.