It seems like at a time when consumers are looking to cut their cell spending, carriers are focused on premium products and services, and now prepaid cell phone vendors are starting to do the same.
For instance, we saw MetroPCS launch the BlackBerry Curve earlier this month. Not to be outdone, Virgin Mobile has started discussing the trick up its sleeve. The company plans to release touchscreen handsets for their prepaid phone plans. This seems like an interesting move at this point, but CEO Dan Schulman thinks it fits right in with industry trends.
While smartphones only account for 20 percent of handsets sold today, Schulman believes that we could soon see rates of up to 50 percent within five years. He’s not the first to make such a proclamation. There has been a trend moving towards all-in-one devices, ones which can place calls, connect to the Internet, message, and even function as a mini computer. And it could thrive on a platform where people don’t need perfect credit to get ahold of them (ie prepaid cell phones).
Virgin appears to be targeting an older audience with this entry, and we’ll see how it works out.
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