U.S. Cellular Joins Marketing War

U.S. Cellular has introduced “no contract” rate plans with unlimited data, voice and messaging on the latest phones starting at $40 per month, and will, as part of a promotion, also pay early termination fees, up to $350 for each line switched to U.S. Cellular from another carrier.

On $50 per month Simple Connect plans, smartphone customers get unlimited voice, messaging and data with 500MB of the data being high-speed. Data is slowed after the 500MB are used, but remains unlimited.

For $60 per month, customers get unlimited voice, messaging and data with 2GB of the data being high-speed.

That is one more bit of evidence that there really is a marketing war going on in the U.S. mobile market, after many years of relative stability, though some will spin the new offers as only the “typical or normal” marketing activity that has occurred in the U.S. mobile business.

In fact, some note, mobile service provider revenues are growing, at least in the U.S. market, and that the amount of an average monthly bill also is rising.

Average monthly revenue per postpaid customer across the industry rose 2.2 percent to $61.15 in the fourth quarter, according to New Street Research. That is up more than $5 per user from the first quarter of 2010, when the same measure was at $55.80.

So many would say those developments are signs that a price war has not broken out in the U.S. mobile market, and that the price war is an illusion.

But the new U.S. Cellular Simple Connect promotion and plans suggest the price cutting will show up in financial statements, if they work.

U.S. Cellular is allowing customers to purchase a new device for $0 down, on a 24-month installment plan.

Customers can upgrade devices every year, trading in the older devices.

Simple Connect plan customers can choose to pay up front for their device and month to month services, or finance their device and receive a bill for financing and service.

The point is that U.S. Cellular’s move suggests a marketing war--above and beyond the normally active marketing battles fought by mobile service providers--is underway, and spreading.