The launch of flagship mobile devices by Apple, Samsung Electronics, and Google sparked intense promotional competition among the US carriers during the third quarter (Q3) of 2024.
Telecom giants targeted both new and existing customers with aggressive preorder trade-in offers, switcher deals, and new line promotions aimed at upgraders, seeking to capitalise on demand for high-end smartphones and drive customer retention, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.
Deepa Karthikeyan, Senior Technology Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “July to September typically marks a pivotal period in the US handset promotions in preparation for the holiday season.”
GlobalData’s latest US Handset Promotions report reveals that preorder promotions on flagship devices, including Apple’s iPhone 16 series, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip6, Galaxy Z Fold6, Google’s Pixel 9 series and the Motorola Razr series, made up 16% of the total offers count during Q3 2024.
The key telcos competed against each other to win upgrade customers potentially looking for deals on the next best smartphone model. Attractive trade-in offers featuring up to $1900 off high-value flagship devices such as the Galaxy Z Flip6 and Z Fold6 dominated the landscape in Q3.
Karthikeyan explains: “The slew of flagship device launches provided the carriers with an opportunity to attract users to their high-end plans and services, increasing their premium userbase and tackling churn with device financing clauses that consumers must honour to remain eligible for the discounted device prices.”
GlobalData reveals that there were 188 carrier-sponsored promotions for the iPhone 16 series, 76 for the Galaxy Z Fold6 and Z Flip6 and 93 for the Pixel 9 series devices. T-Mobile offered the highest number of promotions for these devices among all carriers tracked, featuring a mix of trade-in, upgrade/trade-in, and new line promotions offering users up to $1,100 off the cost of the device.
Karthikeyan concludes: “All carriers launched promotions with comparable value and terms for both new and existing customers, underscoring their dedication to customer retention as well as to acquire new clientele. However, there has been a greater prevalence of promotions for new lines on Pixel devices compared to trade-in or upgrade offers. This trend suggests that carriers are actively promoting the Pixel series to attract new users.”