Mint Mobile Announces 2019 Consumer Cell Phone Predictions

COSTA MESA, Calif., Dec. 21, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Mint Mobile, the wireless company offering carrier-grade service at prices up to 50 percent lower than comparable wireless plans, today announced 2019 cell phone predictions based on a combination of proprietary and industry insights from millions of consumers. The predictions range from cell phone plan pricing to consumption habits to new technologies being adopted worldwide.

The Mint Mobile analytics team predicts the following trends for 2019:

Data consumption will continue to grow, moving to 6.5GB per month.
Mint Mobile expects average cellular data consumption to move from its current 5GB/month to 6.5GB/month in 2019, according to the company's data. Within Mint Mobile's customer base, the average data usage per day has increased 35 percent, growing from 49 MB per subscriber in December 2017 to 66 MB per subscriber in December 2018. Industry wide, data consumption has been increasing year over year as consumers spend hours on social media apps, streaming videos and playing games.

Consumers will continue to text vs. call, especially in the afternoon.
The most popular period for texting is between 2 and 3 p.m. Pacific Time. Text message usage increases dramatically at Noon, peaks from 2 – 3 p.m. and then falls off by 5 p.m. Pacific Time. With apps like Viber, WeChat and Facebook Messenger continuing to grow in popularity, text-based communications will only get stronger in 2019. In contrast, talking on the phone will continue to decline. Mint Mobile found that their average customer only speaks with two callers per day for an average of 11 minutes.

Unlocked phones will be the shining star when it comes to growth in the device category.
Currently, unlocked phones account for 15 percent of the market or an estimated 38 million consumers. This number represents a significant increase of 27 percent from the year before, according to NPD Connected Intelligence. While there is not yet research to predict exact 2019 numbers, Mint Mobile predicts that more consumers will purchase unlocked phones or hold onto their existing unlocked phones in 2019. Consumers prefer the flexibility of not being locked into one carrier's contract.

Electronic SIM cards (eSIM) will have widespread adoption in 2019.
eSIM cards are gradually rolling out within many new devices including Apple, Samsung and Google Pixel. This technology is a game changer for the wireless industry, as most current devices rely on physical SIM cards that a consumer must pop in and out to transfer to a low-cost wireless plan. However, with an eSIM card, there's no need to change SIM cards, which makes choosing a new plan seamless.

Mint Mobile's predictive understanding of the market led to a record breaking year. Since launching in 2016, the company has experienced exponential growth, with 400 percent subscriber growth in its first year, which doubled in size in 2017 and 2018. Also, November was Mint Mobile's strongest month in the company's history, and December is on target to surpass November's record.

"When we launched Mint Mobile, we knew we were addressing many consumer pain points. Paying outrageous prices for wireless plans was at the top of the list," said Aron North, SVP of Marketing and Creative. "Demand has been much greater than anticipated, which is a testament to how we are revolutionizing the way people get wireless. Combining convenience and ease with breakthrough value while keeping the customer front and center has proven to be a very effective approach. We're looking forward to several key industry shifts expected in 2019 that will only enhance consumers' lives and our growth."

For more information about Mint Mobile, please visit www.mintmobile.com.

About Mint Mobile
Mint Mobile is a mobile wireless provider that offers the absolute lowest prices for talk, text and data plans in the U.S. on the nation's most advanced 4G LTE high-speed network with no contracts and no overages. The service was developed by Ultra Mobile in 2016 for the savvy internet shopper who is looking for flexible wireless options at incredible value. With Mint Mobile's Bring Your Own Phone (BYOP) program, customers can get Mint Mobile service on their current device by switching out the SIM card on unlocked GSM phones. Mint also carries the latest devices from manufacturers like Apple and Samsung.

Media Contact
Melissa Barto
PR for Mint Mobile
213-335-5663
[email protected]

SOURCE Mint Mobile

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http://www.mintmobile.com