Sprint Cuts Jobs and Stores

Recently I wrote a post critical of Sprint's creepy TV commercial showing individuals with several "mini mes" designed to get things done. Those little helpers were due to the great resources people get from their Sprint phone. I'm beginning to feel bad for my comments, considering the news I saw regarding Sprints current circumstances.

According to Mediabistro:

Fortune is reporting that Sprint plans to cut 4,000 jobs and shut down 125 retail locations this year:

"The news keeps getting worse at Sprint. The struggling wireless telco suffered its worst quarter yet for customer defections, saying a staggering 683,000 post-paid users headed for the door in the fourth quarter. Sprint's churn, reflecting the rate of monthly subscriber loss, rose to 2.3 percent, which is more than double the rates recently posted at the fastest-growing big carrier, Verizon Wireless."

Sprint is the nation's third largest carrier, with approximately 54 million subscribers. AT&T and Verizon are neck and neck, with 66 and 64 million respectively. T-Mobile brings up the rear (of the four major carriers) with 28 million customers.

I doubt seriously that the "creepy ad" I referred to in a recent post played any role. But I'm also sure that their weak campaigns have done little in winning the defections war. Of the big four, I think Verizon has the most effective commercials and the only theme that is memorable. With their long term use of "can you hear me now?," we know exactly what they are talking about and the message resonates. Yet they have been clever enough to tie it to different themes to prevent us getting bored.

I know that personal stories are less than reliable, but there seemed to be a time when virtually everyone I knew used Sprint. Those days seems to be long gone.

Kevin Price is Host of the Houston Business Show (M-F at 11 AM on CNN 650) and Publisher of the Houston Business Review. Hear the show live and online at HoustonBusinessShow.com. Visit the archive of past shows here.

When Your T-Mobile Crashes

In January I announced with excitement that I purchased a T-Mobile Dash (photo) and have been largely singing its praises. Today, my phone crashed. The result of this disaster made me realized the following:

* My cell phone is so much more than a phone. I have several kids playing baseball and I love watching the games. However, I also love to keep track of my favorite Major League Teams -- the Astros, Tigers, and Orioles -- during my kids games. That has been seriously disrupted by my phone's downfall.

* I work more efficiently with my phone. I answer several emails throughout the day with my T-Mobile Dash.

* There may be something to be said for cell phone insurance. I rarely pay for such warranties, but this phone wasn't cheap and I was afraid it wasn't very firm. Sure enough, it didn't last six months and I'm not particularly tough on the phone. I'm glad I got that insurance.

The thing I found most surprising is how lost I feel without it. It still rings and I can still talk on it, but without the screen, it seems like a shell of its former self. It is amazing how dependent I have become on a technology I have only had for only around 8 years.

Are Vanity Numbers in Trouble?

Back in the good old days people typically only had to remember 7 numbers in order to complete a call. Those numbers began with a word emphasizing the first two letters found correlated to numbers on the keypad (mine began as "LIncoln", which was "54"). With the rapid growth in the population and the changes in telecommunications, virtually every city now has to use ten digits. Still, the smart business could make it easy for potential customers to find them through the popular vanity numbers.

An apartment complex might have a number like (333) 444-RENT, with that word at the end making it easier to remember. Recently I was driving along in my car and I heard an ad for an upcoming concert in town and I wanted more information. I pulled out my phone and began to dial away and the last five digits was a name. Unfortunately for me, and those who use Blackberrys and other more modern phones (I use the T-Mobile Dash), I couldn't find the numbers (since the keypad conforms to a keyboard, I would have to "guess", which wasn't worth the effort in my opinion). In a recent interview with Richard Sonnier, our Houston Business Show expert in IT, it was pointed out that roughly 10 percent of all phones fall into this category. This means about 10 percent of cell phone users will not be able to easily navigate using vanity numbers. This number will only grow.

So what will replace vanity numbers? Well, these new phones virtually always have web access, so the web sites will continue to grow in importance and prominence. For those interested in calls, there will be a move towards finding numbers that are easy to remember (e.g., no more than 2 or 3 unique numbers per phone number).

Being able to change and flexibility is important in our world of business, as we see vanity numbers are finding themselves, like so many other things in our world today, a victim of the Internet.

Some of the Odd Side Benefits of a Dash or Blackberry

I mentioned earlier in this blog that I recently purchased T-Mobile's version of a Blackberry called the Dash. I also sounded like a kid in the candy store due to the purchase. Well the rave reviews continue, though for very odd reasons. Here are a few new reasons why I love my Dash:

* My office computer actually feels fast after waiting for the Windows on my Dash. I haven't experienced that feeling in a long time.

* The Dash screen is so small it feels like I'm looking at a movie screen when I am in front of the monitor at my office (wow, look at the detail!).

* I really appreciate the ability to open multiple windows on my office computer, which is a dream on my Dash.

I won't even discuss the obvious differences in the keyboards (advocates of evolution, watch carefully the thumbs of future generations).

In spite of these odd compliments, I still love the Dash and am excited about my ability to keep in touch in a way I was never able to do so before. But it was also nice to be able to appreciate my old stand by in a way I hadn't in a long time.

Entering the 21st Century

It feels as though I have finally entered the 21st century. I purchased a truly modern cell phone. I thought about buying a Blackberry, but never really thought I would need it. It seemed like over kill, but I purchased the T-Mobile Dash, which has most of the same bells and whistles, but at a lower price than the Blackberry.

It has it all -- web access, multi-media, easy to use email, etc. It is almost like a mini-computer (not to mention a top of the line cell phone, video player, etc.). Like any new technology -- cell phones, DVDs, computers, etc. -- you eventually wondered how you got by without such for all those years. That feeling came within about 30 minutes of getting my hands on a Dash. In fact, I felt stupid waiting so long to buy a phone like it (and I'm now looking at even better equipped phones, but please don't tell my wife).

One of my biggest interests are the major technological and other trends that are changing the economy and society. I love to chronicle them in this blog. With the purchase of a Dash, I can safely say that old cell phones are history as the proliferation of such technology drives the price of these phones down and the envy spreads as people share their phones with others. Another victim of this technology will be the old media such as print (newspapers, magazines and probably even books). With this browser and its ability to make the pages conform to the screen (e.g., this blog looks great on my Dash), I will read what I want, when I want, and such technology will make print publications obsolete. With multi-media capabilities, radio and TV will continue to be challenged by technology like the Dash. It is truly a brave new world of technology.