The Un-Carrier Consumer frustration with perceived unnecessary costs and complexity in the wireless telecommunications industry has long been prevalent. Yet among a market landscape dominated by rigid contracts and layers of bureaucracy for customers, one company saw an opportunity for disruption. T-Mobile, long overshadowed by AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint, decided to craft a unique "Un-carrier" strategy that centered on not acting like a wireless carrier. Since 2013, T-Mobile has introduced a series of improvements to consumer plans that emphasize simplicity, fairness, and value. These have included eliminating long-term contracts, instituting unlimited access to data, and allowing for faster phone upgrades. Though each campaign has differed, the overarching Un-carrier strategy was designed to highlight T-Mobile's commitment to improving the wireless carrier experience beyond parity levels. T-Mobile has gained traction with the strategy through targeted brand positioning and creative messaging. Positioned as the "rebel," T-Mobile is not afraid to challenge industry leaders over the status quo. Putting caps on data utilization, for example, has historically allowed carriers to maximize revenue. T-Mobile observed that this frustrated consumers and thus decided to eliminate the common practice of metering voice and text capabilities. By placing customer needs ahead of profit margins, T-Mobile was able to effectively separate itself within the market. Additionally, rather than trying to obtain an edge with technological advances, T-Mobile created a series of must-haves that other carriers weren't set up to provide. One example was the company's willingness to pay the early termination fees of all customers who switch to T-Mobile from other carriers. Ultimately, T-Mobile's goal was to be everything that traditional players were not. To support this positioning, the company generated a series of humorous advertising spots highlighting why individuals were switching their plans over from competitors. CEO John Legere also initiated a series of TED-talk style presentations that pointed to the unique points of differentiation T-Mobile offered. 

David A. Aaker. Strategic Market Management, 11th Edition (p. 56). Wiley. Kindle Edition. 

1.     Perform a competitive analysis of the wireless telecommunications industry 

2.     How can T-Mobile maintain its competitive advantage?

Answer rating: 100% (QA)

1 Competitive Analysis of Wireless Telecommunications Industry Key Players Identify major competitors such as ATT Verizon and Sprint along with any em... View the full answer