A new study released by a wireless industry firm showed that majority of users are now preferring to use prepaid cellphone service rather than committing to a two-year subscription contract.
New Millennium Research Council added that the new trend among cellphone users are putting the burden on the shoulders of major carriers in the United States since most of the popular phones, like the Apple iPhone and Research and Motion Blackberry, are being sold in the country can only be acquired through subscription plans.
“Prepaid service not only cost less but also offers more attractive service options to millions of users,” NMRC said, citing the significant decline in the number of people signing up for plans.
“If someone wants to get an iPhone or an Android Smartphone, they have to pay over $70 every month to enjoy the device that goes along with the subscription plan. While prepaid will only cost a person around 10 to 20 cents depending on the number of minutes they need to talk, making it a cheaper alternative than to have a $70-month iPhone,” the group added.
For many years now, prepaid service has been the bread and butter of many people who can’t afford to acquire plans because they failed to qualify the necessary credit check.
To date, around one-fifth of Americans are on prepaid. But the number is expected to shoot up as many of them search for a cheaper alternative.
NMRC said that the recent recession is one of the major factors why people are now shifting to prepaid from postpaid subscription plans.
Also, better offers like unlimited text messages and calls are now being peddled to prepaid users for just $45 a month, almost half of what major carriers offer in their postpaid lines.
The popularity of text messaging and tweet on the go are now making the shift to prepaid an easier choice for many of the mobile phone users in the US.
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• PlatinumTel is one prepaid provider to consider for valuable, flexible plans. Their new Real Paygo plan is an a la carte plan that has the cheapest rates in pay-as-you-go, allowing users to pay only for the services they use. Talk is just 5 cents a minute, text is 2 cents a text and 10 cents per megabyte of web service. This is half that of other carriers’ rates! If an unlimited plan is preferred, PlatinumTel’s is just $50 for talk and text and an extra $10 for unlimited web.