Sprint Nextel, the nation's third-largest wireless carrier, said it lost 1.3 million subscribers in the fourth quarter, but the results were not as bad as some had feared.
During the quarter, the Overland Park, Kan.-based company lost 1.1 million postpaid customers, who pay monthly bills. Including wholesale and prepaid customers, it lost 1.3 million.
Its biggest rival, Verizon Wireless added 1.4 million customers in the quarter, while AT&T, the No. 2 U.S. mobile service, added 2.1 million.
The company said it lost $1.6 billion during the three months ending Dec. 31. By comparison, Sprint lost $29.3 billion during the same period a year ago. That figure included a $29 billion write-down of the value of its 2005 purchase of Nextel.
During a conference call, Chief Executive Dan Hesse said he still wasn't happy with his company's performance but said he believed Sprint's efforts to rebuild the company's image were gaining traction.
"The improvements we have made with the customer experience are the foundation for driving further improvement in the perception of our brand," said Chief Executive Dan Hesse., pointing out that Sprint lost slightly fewer customers during the fourth quarter than in the third quarter.
Analysts expect Sprint to benefit from selling Palm's forthcoming Pre phone, expected to be a strong competitor to Apple's popular iPhone.
Sprint will be the exclusive U.S. carrier for the phone at least through the end of 2009.
In the past year, the company has focused on improving customer service -- seen as one of its biggest shortcomings.
Sprint also completed its merger with Kirkland, Wash.-based Clearwire. The new Clearwire began offering services using WiMax technology last month in Portland, Ore., and plans to roll out commercial service in other markets this year.
Sprint announced last month it would slash 8,000 jobs in a bid to save $1.2 billion annually. Analysts predict the company will soon outsource thousands more.
here's some advice on getting more costomers:
-improve your data plan pricing!
-get better performing phones and dont buy into little pieces of junk
-buy nicer looking phones because the currently line up stinks
-improve your coverage
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
well now we see a place to start
2. Posted by gtskyrider
Mon Feb 23, 2009 11:59 pm
THIS IS SOOO FREAK'IN REDICULOUS! SPRINT was the LEADER of cutting edge technology, THEN got lax, and everyone saw what they were doing and decided to run with the cash while sprint decided to buy a washed up company like NEXTEL?! OK, you screwed up but you can bounce back if you do some things that made you the KING but failed all your customers. First Hesse, on the site you say you're easy to reach.I don't think so, you're as ignorant as the people who caused the downfall. YOU HAVEN'T MADE AN OUNCE OF DIFFERENCE! OK this is what you do to make this company #1 again:
1> Your loyal customers.we deserve a freak'n break.why do we have to pay an arm and leg for a replacement phone.FREE or 50 bucks or less sounds good to your so called "VIP" customers.
2> What happened to you getting the top of the line Samsung phones? I don't get it. Verizon/AT&T got all the good phones and what do you do.get us the sorry ones when we had all the good ones.
3> Need to adopt a more customer is right approach and stop screwing up the bill. Everyone has horror stories with Sprint and more than one if you have been with them long enough (for some reason I'm still a loyal customer with 3 lines, but getting ready to drop you soon if things don't change.
Make these changes and you're back in, you don't .good bye SPRINT.HELLLO EVERYONE ELSE CAUSE THEY "WANT" THE PEOPLE'S BUSINESS.
3. Posted by tweetdriver63
Tue Feb 24, 2009 3:48 pm
I think it's improving, but Sprint still needs to do better. First of all, At&T and Verizon tend to have better/cooler phones, but I think Sprint is trying with phones like the Instinct, and the Pre. When I came over from Cingular several years ago, Sprint definitely led the pack when it came to cool phones. That's one of the main reasons we changed services (that and Cingular didn't offer any unlimited texting plans -- two teenagers). The manager at my local Sprint store even gave me a $150 credit on my account to cover the termination fees at Cingular.
Second, Sprint's advertising does nothing to help the image. AT&T and Verizon have cool, hip, memorable TV ads. I can't, for the life of me, think what the Sprint TV ads are these days.
Third, I agree with the previous poster about upgrade costs. I was told a long time ago, by the Sprint store manager, that Sprint is in the business of selling service, not phones, so why try to make so much on the sale of them? Why not offer your Premier customers the newest, best, coolest phones you've got, for maybe 75% off or something? Even free? If you keep your customers, or get new ones because of those offers, aren't you going to make bigger profits?
4. Posted by man1234
Wed Feb 25, 2009 10:37 pm
THIS IS SOOO FREAK'IN REDICULOUS! SPRINT was the LEADER of cutting edge technology, THEN got lax, and everyone saw what they were doing and decided to run with the cash while sprint decided to buy a washed up company like NEXTEL?! OK, you screwed up but you can bounce back if you do some things that made you the KING but failed all your customers. First Hesse, on the site you say you're easy to reach.I don't think so, you're as ignorant as the people who caused the downfall. YOU HAVEN'T MADE AN OUNCE OF DIFFERENCE! OK this is what you do to make this company #1 again:
1> Your loyal customers.we deserve a freak'n break.why do we have to pay an arm and leg for a replacement phone.FREE or 50 bucks or less sounds good to your so called "VIP" customers.
2> What happened to you getting the top of the line Samsung phones? I don't get it. Verizon/AT&T got all the good phones and what do you do.get us the sorry ones when we had all the good ones.
3> Need to adopt a more customer is right approach and stop screwing up the bill. Everyone has horror stories with Sprint and more than one if you have been with them long enough (for some reason I'm still a loyal customer with 3 lines, but getting ready to drop you soon if things don't change.
Make these changes and you're back in, you don't .good bye SPRINT.HELLLO EVERYONE ELSE CAUSE THEY "WANT" THE PEOPLE'S BUSINESS.
AGREED! and not even only samsung phones.
how about your LGs, SANYOS!, motorolas.
5. Posted by PhoneUser21
Thu Feb 26, 2009 2:35 pm
Ok first of all I will admit that MOST of what you say is true and a fair argument.
BUT.
You really need to look at things outside your little box called your head.
To: Man1234
Improve you data pricing?
ARE YOU SERIOUS? (LOL) If you can find someone else that has a National data plan cheaper than Sprint PLS Let me know cause BY FAR SPRINT HAS THE LOWEST DATA PRICING compared to the top wireless service.
Improve your coverage. easy fix. if sprint aint working for you why stay with them? Go to another service that has excellent signal in your area and stop talking crap bout sprint.
To:Gtskyrider
Replacement phones. if you are a true phone fanatic or just a savy person you would know that sprint was the LAST carrier to switch their replacement plan. They use to charge ONLY 50 to replace ANY phone thats right ANY phone PDA's. ANY. But now they jumped on the wagon and are charging more.i know it sucks. i hate it also but what can we do.Nothing
To:Tweetdriver63
Before you start making your 3 wishes from a genie that you found locked in a dirty lamp. Listen to what i have to say.
Phones can't be sold with a 75% discount especially the cool phones like Touch Pro, Instinct, and Blackberry.
i'm guessing your the type of person that wants things for free in life. The wireless companies make their money off the service AND PHONES. what do you think Sprint, Verizon, AT&T, and T mobile get their phones for free?
They already give you a huge discount some phones. If you look at the regular prices they range from $300 to $600 but you get them for just $50 to $300.
Sprint has the Premier plan that most of you talked about but i doubt you understand. Its a great plan to have cause you can upgrade your phone every year at the discounted price that new customers get instead of waiting 2 years like most people.
IF THAT'S NOT A DISCOUNT THEN I DONT KNOW WHAT IS.
To: Everyone
I was a Sprint rep and i'm not going to sit here saying Sprint is the best cause like every other wireless company they all have their Screw ups.
When i took care of the problems that people have on their bills 75% of the time it was the customers fault for not understanding how things work. If you don't understand something,. ASK! and stop pointing the finger at someone else cause you don't have the courage to blame yourself.
I think its funny how news like this never post how much the gained but rather they like posting how much they lost.
and i know people are going to think im putting you down or just talking crap to you but im not. im trying to help you understand why things are the way the are.
I'm willing to bet someone will post a rude and unnecessary comment towards me cause they dont want to understand and again want to point the blame.
6. Posted by man1234
Sat Feb 28, 2009 11:18 am
Well as far as the data pricing, i meant as in charging 3cents per KB of data when sending a pic/ sms voice message. thats just flat out ridiculous. no other carrier did that. verizon and tmobile dont at least. I feel like one should be able to send a picture (if without a plan) for 20 cents of whatever the rate is, whithout having to worry about some stupid 3cent/KB charge. If u think thats a valid charge than sorry but its abs not.
If tmo and verizon dont charge for it, then i think sprint should start getting into that gameplan
and i was informed that the charge was going to be dropped as of jan 2009, but im not sure sprint fully followed through with that one.
and 2ndly, im not saying sprints coverage is bad really. Where i use my phone it works, but certain phones get better reception which kinda agers me because if you get the "wrong phone" you can end up with crappy coverage. Will i leave sprint over that? no i wont. all im saying is their coverage can definitely be improved all over in general
7. Posted by DonLouie
Sat Feb 28, 2009 3:21 pm
man1234, the new messaging and Everything plans eliminate the added data cost for pic/vid mail and if you had an older plan with data you don't get any charges.
8. Posted by bgreif
Sat Feb 28, 2009 5:34 pm
did you know that the simply everything plan only covers you while you are on the Sprint Network, if you are roaming, you are going to pay out the nose, just in case you wasn't aware of that, always make sure to read the fine print
9. Posted by man1234
Sun Mar 01, 2009 11:17 am
man1234, the new messaging and Everything plans eliminate the added data cost for pic/vid mail and if you had an older plan with data you don't get any charges.
right but what about not having a data plan. sprint means to tell me that for NOT having a data plan, i am going to get charged 3cents per kb for se3nding a pic or video message? that can end up being like 5 dollars for that 1 message. thats ridiculous. verizon and tmobile do not do that. sprint should not do that. end of story
10. Posted by gtskyrider
Sun Mar 01, 2009 9:42 pm
to phoneuser 21: I wouldn't say we can't do nothing.leave'em is what most people do and that's exactly what people are going to continue to do to sprint if they don't change.
11. Posted by PhoneUser21
Sun Mar 01, 2009 10:07 pm
To: GT
I agree with you and that what i'm trying to say. if you not happy with them leave. Simple as that why waste your time on something you don't like thats my saying. I had problems with sprint, Verizon, At&t, and T Mobile but i don't start talking on how bad they are because of a problem. No one is perfect and if you want perfection then keep looking for it but PLS don't waste your time on something you don't like.
Sprint does need some better things but i cant say they are the worst carrier i've had cause their not.
I laugh at people sometimes cause they think that what sprint is doing is just a "Sprint thing."
They dont realize that every other carrier is doing the same thing if not worst.
The Replacement plan that your complaining about. every carrier has it. SOOOOOOO no matter where you go you will have to deal with the same thing.
12. Posted by brandt00
Mon Mar 02, 2009 9:52 am
I was looking to switch from Verizon (expensive) to Sprint's Simply Everything plan. But I just read someone's comment that if you go out of Sprint's network, the data and voice usage is charged. Is that correct? Where I work, Sprint picks up Verizon's tower. So anything that I do there, such as data and calls, I will be charged? That isn't fair!
13. Posted by PhoneUser21
Mon Mar 02, 2009 6:31 pm
To: Brandt00
Yes that is true if you go to an area that has no sprint service e.i. out in the middle of no where.
Verizon and Sprint have roaming contracts with each other so the chances of you being out of Sprint service are very unlikely. Sprint has coverage just like Verizon almost in every state and area you can think of.
But if you really are scared of being "charged the fee" you can ALWAYS switch your phone to pick up Sprint service ONLY. That's a great feature that all Sprint phones have for people that don't want to take the chance of being charged roaming fees, even though roaming fees have gone out of style or a couple of years now.
I hope this posting helped and if you have anymore questions pls ask away.
14. Posted by brandt00
Tue Mar 03, 2009 10:07 am
Thank you very much. I want do downsize my bills and it seems that Sprint has the best plan (simply everything) which I pay a lot more with Verizon and their customer service has been poor lately. I am tired of such high bills. Any suggestion on if I should go to sprint? How can I better my signal strength in my building?
15. Posted by PhoneUser21
Tue Mar 03, 2009 3:52 pm
I do recommend Sprint to everyone even though they do have a bad rep that to be honest has changed. Just make sure you know what the charges are and why they are charging you. I used to work for sprint and i never had a customer come back in a complain bout not being told about the charge i was very honest with them bout everything.
I suggest you get a phone from sprint first, and still keep your verizon, and try it out everywhere you will use it to make sure they get signal. Once you are satisfied with sprint coverage they can port your number over to sprint.
If for some odd reason you get no signal in your building they do have the airave to boost up signal in building you can look into that also. Very good piece of equipment has its ups and downs like every other thing.
16. Posted by DonLouie
Wed Mar 04, 2009 5:33 pm
Brandt00 both PhoneUser21 and bgrief are both wrong because roaming is included in all plans at no extra cost. Sprint reserves the right to cancel service if there is excessive roaming for three consecutive months. You should only use change the roaming settings for call quality, there's no need to worry about billing for it unless it's an older plan
17. Posted by PhoneUser21
Wed Mar 04, 2009 11:56 pm
So how is it that I'm wrong i basically said the same thing you did just in a different manner. I said theres No roaming fee anymore and you said roaming is included.
Where was i wrong?
The point i was making was that He will never get Charged for Roaming Fees.
I'm still lost as to where i was wrong?
18. Posted by bgreif
Sat Mar 07, 2009 7:11 pm
all Im saying is ask lots and lots of questions and get it in writing before agreeing to anything with Sprint, that small print that flys across the bottom of the screen on the simply everything commercials does state only on the Sprint network, which does mean if you are roaming you are going to get charged out the nose, and if you choose to put your phone on Sprint only, your phone will not work while roaming
19. Posted by DonLouie
Sun Mar 08, 2009 11:28 am
PhoneUser21 I based it on your answer to brandt00's question on whether SE is only valid on Sprint's network is yes. If I got the context wrong, my bad. bgrief I never read the fine print on a commercial but did on my contract and in the price plan brochures, they clearly there's an 800 minute roaming cap and a data roaming cap that I'm not sure of but neither says you'll get charged for using it just that they reserve the right to void the contract for abuse.
20. Posted by gtskyrider
Sat Mar 14, 2009 10:55 am
PhoneUser21.I'm glad I complained and satisfaction is job one even though it took me over 2 hours on the phone with Sprint to get their act together. Even though you're not happy with service you don't leave, you fight for them to get it right, if all fails.then you leave. I've been a Sprint customer for years and try to be loyal, but I expect the loyalty to come back to me as a customer.it is the customer that keeps the Company afloat. If you don't complain.how will they know that there is a problem.and we all know they have problems.
21. Posted by man1234
Sat Mar 14, 2009 1:02 pm
PhoneUser21.I'm glad I complained and satisfaction is job one even though it took me over 2 hours on the phone with Sprint to get their act together. Even though you're not happy with service you don't leave, you fight for them to get it right, if all fails.then you leave. I've been a Sprint customer for years and try to be loyal, but I expect the loyalty to come back to me as a customer.it is the customer that keeps the Company afloat. If you don't complain.how will they know that there is a problem.and we all know they have problems.
very true. i agreee
22. Posted by brandt00
Mon Mar 16, 2009 12:48 pm
Thanks to all who gave me advice, (DonLouie, bgrief, and phoneuser21. I am, most likely, going to switch. I will keep my verizon until I am sure I get service everywhere. The airwave is a great idea, but you have to hook it up to a DSL or TI line and/or cable. I am unsure if my company will allow me to do this. I don't want to pay that much for a unit and then find out I can't use it. Does anyone know about any other type of device (portable) that I could use? I have seen ads for "antennabooster" and such. Do these actually work?
23. Posted by IOWA
Wed Mar 25, 2009 5:43 pm
Thanks to all who gave me advice, (DonLouie, bgrief, and phoneuser21. I am, most likely, going to switch. I will keep my verizon until I am sure I get service everywhere. The airwave is a great idea, but you have to hook it up to a DSL or TI line and/or cable. I am unsure if my company will allow me to do this. I don't want to pay that much for a unit and then find out I can't use it. Does anyone know about any other type of device (portable) that I could use? I have seen ads for "antennabooster" and such. Do these actually work?
You could get a Signal Repeater, and there's no monthly fee associated with it, it won't work as well as Airave, but it IS an option. If you go that route, don't buy any of the cheapies as they will not help any. Trust me. You gotta spend the bucks to get them to work. I suggest research on google for a quality repeater.
24. Posted by brandt00
Wed Mar 25, 2009 7:53 pm
Thank you
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