Virgin to begin selling iPhones

Technology

Microsoft reveals Xbox One, next-generation gaming

Microsoft revealed the Xbox One, its next-generation entertainment console, during a presentation Tuesday at its headquarters in Redmond, Wash.Tuesday

Microsoft on mobile grows in South Africa

Microsoft, trying to find growth markets for its mobile products, is projecting that rising demand in South Africa will help it pass BlackBerry and Android and pave the way for further gains on the continent.Monday

Alibaba preps to set IPO price

Alibaba Group Holding doesn’t want to be the next Facebook – at least for its prospective initial public offering.Monday

At a glance

Since Verizon Wireless broke AT&T’s exclusive grip on the iPhone last year, several other phone carriers now offer Apple’s popular smartphone. Here’s a look at how iPhone availability has expanded in the U.S.:
•Coming to No. 1: AT&T Inc. was the only U.S. carrier offering the iPhone when the first model came out in 2007. It lost its exclusive status in February 2011 when Verizon Wireless, the nation’s top wireless carrier, started selling the iPhone.
•Another national carrier: Sprint Nextel Corp., the No. 3 carrier, also got the iPhone, starting in October with Apple Inc.’s introduction of the iPhone 4S. It also sells the iPhone 4 with AT&T and Verizon Wireless.
•Regional offering: C Spire Wireless, a small company that provides service in Mississippi and surrounding states, started selling the iPhone late last year.
•Cheaper iPhones: Several small, regional cellphone companies began selling the iPhone at prices that undercut the big carriers. For instance, the cost for a basic 4S model through those carriers is $150, which is $49 less than what national carriers charge. Carriers making this cheaper offering include NTelos Wireless of Virginia; Appalachian Wireless of Kentucky; and Alaska Communications, Matanuska Telephone Association and GCI of Alaska.

NEW YORK – Virgin Mobile USA, one of Sprint’s brands for prepaid, no-contract phone service, will start selling the iPhone on June 29, charging $549 for a basic model.

The high price of the phone comes with an upside: service will start at $30 per month.

That means the phone, plus two years of service, will cost $1,269, excluding taxes. That’s nearly $800 less than a subscriber would pay for the same phone, an iPhone 4 with 8 gigabytes of memory, if buying it under the Sprint Nextel Corp. brand. Sprint charges $100 for the phone and $80 per month for service, excluding taxes.

The iPhone has until recently been restricted to contract-based plans. Now, the floodgates appear open for the phone to enter the prepaid, no-contract market, which is aimed at people with low incomes and poor credit. However, the high initial cost of the phone is likely to be an obstacle. Virgin Mobile sells other smartphones for as little as $80.

Leap Wireless International Inc., the parent of the Cricket prepaid service, has said it would start selling the phone on June 22, starting at $400 and $55 per month. Leap’s CEO said the phone would likely account for about 10 percent of the phones it sells over the next few years.

For Apple Inc., the maker of the phone, expanding sales to the no-contract segment means a chance to reach buyers who don’t have the credit for contract-based plans, or don’t want to be tied down with contracts.

The number of people on contract plans has plateaued, and actually contracted for the first time in the first quarter of this year. Meanwhile, the number of people on no-contract plans is still growing.

In addition to the iPhone 4, Virgin Mobile USA will sell the iPhone 4S, the model launched last year, for $649 with 16 gigabytes of memory. Virgin Mobile’s cheapest plan cost $35 per month, with a $5 discount possible for buyers who set up automatic monthly payment.