The wait is over for wireless dealers looking for a piece of the MobileX action.
The company today announced the formation of its independent wireless dealer network across the U.S., which will broaden its retail footprint for customers nationwide.
The prepaid brand, which uses Verizon’s network in an MVNO arrangement, last fall announced a multi-year deal to distribute its wireless service through Walmart. This latest distribution deal will give MobileX access to smaller, independent shops across the country.
In a press release today, MobileX founder and CEO Peter Adderton said he’s been fighting for dealers since the Sprint/T-Mobile merger because they’re an essential part of the ecosystem. The merger took a lot of Sprint dealers out of business.
"The continued consolidation of MVNOs coupled with the ever-changing compensation structures from the big three major carriers poses a significant risk to small, independent wireless dealers," Adderton said in a statement. "As one of the few remaining independent MVNOs in the industry, MobileX allows dealers to retain the power to diversify and protect their revenue streams."
According to Chief Sales Officer Michael Lanzon, MobileX will be sold in dealer stores next to other prepaid brands. That’s notable because a couple years ago, Metro by T-Mobile dealers reportedly were told that they couldn’t sell other brands alongside the Metro brand.
Jeff Moore, principal of Wave7 Research and a former manager for Sprint, said establishing the dealer network is a significant move on MobileX’s part. “Dealers are looking for opportunities amid recent consolidation and this could be an opportunity,” he told Fierce via email.
NWIDA’s response
MobileX is in the process of joining the National Wireless Independent Dealer Association (NWIDA).
NWIDA President Adam Wolf said dealers are looking for “something better,” as most of the carriers and some MVNOs have been cutting back on compensation. In addition, dealers have learned "not to put all their eggs in one basket" – especially after seeing what happened to T-Mobile dealers, he said.
“Peter has always been an advocate of the dealers and we hope his program will keep the dealers in the forefront. We think it will,” he said. “We look forward to MobileX joining NWIDA."
According to Lanzon, MobileX plans to have a “meaningful and accessible” dealer community in the thousands throughout the U.S. by the end of 2024.
Walmart stores
Meanwhile, MobileX has been busy rolling out to about 3,700 Walmart stores nationwide and on Walmart.com, in addition to its direct-to-consumer offering.
MobileX’s big value proposition is to save customers money based on their actual data usage. Its app-based service uses AI to learn and evolve with a customer’s usage patterns. According to the MobileX website, it takes about 10 days for the system to accurately predict a customer’s usage.
MobileX offers SIM cards, with customized plans starting at $4.08 a month, as well as “unlimited” offers of $14.88/month and $24.88/month. For the time being, MobileX is using a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) model, but the plan is to sell unlocked devices in the future, Adderton told Fierce in an interview last month.