Mobile Phones in the US

PROSPECTS

As smartphone premiumisation continues, consumers look for ways to save money

After years of rising average unit prices for smartphones, US consumers have begun taking steps to save on costs for the products. Major cell phone carriers began phasing out contracts that allowed consumers to upgrade their phones every two years in 2013, and by 2016 the plans were no longer available.

5G mobile service and phones arrive

The past year brought limited launches for the long-awaited 5G internet service from the big four US cell phone carriers. While AT&T launched a 5G service for a very limited number of its business customers in December 2018, Verizon launched the first publicly available 5G network in Chicago and Minneapolis in April 2019.

Feature phones on a seemingly unarrestable downward slide

Feature phones faced another year of declining sales in 2019. With the vast majority of US consumers opting for smartphones, most purchases of feature phones are made by consumers looking for the lowest cost options and those who do not need constant internet connectivity.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Google expands the availability of Pixel phones

Google launched its ambitious Pixel line in 2016, hoping to challenge the flagship phones of category leaders Apple and Samsung. The Pixel phones received great reviews for their powerful cameras, excellent use of Android software and including Google’s own digital assistant, but their sales were largely limited by an exclusive carrier relationship with Verizon.

US carrier market set to be shaken up by T-Mobile and Sprint merger

In 2018, T-Mobile and Sprint announced a plan to merge their companies, the third and fourth largest networks in the US. The announcement was met with scepticism from many, as it requires approval from the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Justice (DOJ), which have voiced concerns about declining competition in the cellular network carrier industry in the past.

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