Data from Wireless World Forum?s ?mobileYouth Fanscape 2006? reveals significant differences between the profiles of the US network operator customers. Data for the 254 page report was based on a comprehensive survey of 4,602 US cellphone customers to reveal user preferences and spending patterns by operator, age, gender and location.

Sample operator profiles:

• Virgin Mobile USA
• Young, trendy and typically students (average age, 21.4 yrs), Virgin Mobile customers are early adopters looking to differentiate themselves from the crowd ? but within a limited budget.
  
• Despite a high interest in new handsets, a lack of money leads Virgin Mobile customers to have one of the longest upgrade cycles, reporting 9.8 months until their next upgrade.
• Virgin customers are casual listeners more likely to be interested in mobile radio or streaming audio than MP3s.
• Virgin customers are weary of mobile marketing; only 1.7% of Virgin customers have entered a competition with a text message and 8.6% want to receive special offers by SMS.
• Verizon Wireless
• Verizon Wireless customers have mainstream tastes and are more family orientated than the average US cellphone owner; 7.3% of customers share their cellphone with another family member.
• Verizon Wireless customers are choosy when it comes to promotions, only responding to the best offers.
  
• Verizon Wireless customers are interested in mobile video services with 9.1% of customers reporting an interest in watching videos on their cellphones.

Other operator included in this report: US Cellular, T-Mobile, Nextel, Sprint PCS, Cricket, Cingular, Cellular One, ATT Wireless, Alltel


Insights:

• 8.9% of T-mobile customers want to receive special offers by SMS
• 10% of Verizon customers said they would change network for a better phone
• On average 3.2% of US customers would pay more for a cellphone with better gaming facilities
• The family-orientated customers of Cellular One and Alltel customers are the least likely to move to another network.
• 25% of Cricket customers said they would change network for better games

mobileYouth products are widely quoted in the media on topics relating to young people and their adoption of mobile phone services.
The mobileYouth report is a guide to successfully developing and marketing products to the younger generation.




Data Contained in the Report on:

US Cellular, T-Mobile, Nextel, Sprint PCS, Cricket, Cingular, Cellular One, ATT Wireless, Alltel