Tag Archives: tmus

Verizon: Baby Boomers Top Millennials In iPhone, Mobile Device Care

Baby boomers take the best care of Apple ( AAPL ) iPhones and other mobile devices, while millennials are the generation most likely to have ever broken or lost their phones. So says a new study by Verizon Communications ( VZ ) and KRC Research. Some 49% of U.S. mobile phone owners have broken or lost a mobile phone, says the study. Verizon, of course, has reason to make the point. Verizon customers have the option of signing up for a $10 monthly “Total Mobile Protection Plan ,” which offers coverage for loss, theft, physical or water damage to devices. Most consumers now buy phones in monthly installment plans. Sprint ( S ) and T-Mobile US ( TMUS ) offer leasing plans, while AT&T ( T ) and Verizon do not. Apple last year rolled out its first iPhone financing plan . Apple’s upgrade program includes a warranty that covers incidental damage as well as technical support. But Apple’s upgrade plan does not cover device losses and theft, while carrier options do. According to the Verizon study, two-thirds of millennials have broken or lost a mobile phone at least once, compared with 58% of Gen Xers and only 27% of baby boomers. Millennials drop their phones an average of four times per week, while Gen Xers and boomers both do so only twice weekly. Parents, meanwhile, are more likely to have broken or lost a mobile phone (67%) than non-parents (38%).

Morgan Stanley Light On Tech But Likes Amazon, Microsoft, Comcast

Amid the sell-off in growth technology stocks in early 2016, Morgan Stanley still likes tech names with plenty of free cash, dividends, improving profit margins and rising market share. In a research report Wednesday, Morgan Stanley said its top tech picks include Comcast ( CMCSA ), T-Mobile US, Microsoft ( MSFT ), Amazon.com, Qualcomm ( QCOM ) and IBM. Morgan Stanley, though, is underweight on the technology sector overall, preferring utilities, financials and health care. “Relative to the broader market, we’ve seen more technology growth stocks with contracting multiples than any time in the last 10 years,” said analyst Adam Parker in the report. He also noted: “Since the (2008) financial crisis, technology stocks with improving margins have strongly outperformed those with high sales growth but no margin expansion.” Here’s what Morgan Stanley likes in some tech stocks: — T-Mobile ( TMUS ). “Competition in the wireless industry is intense,” but T-Mobile continues gain share with its Uncarrier-branded promotions vs. rivals. — Comcast. The cable TV firm has pricing power and invests wisely in broadband infrastructure and NBCUniversal, says Parker. — Amazon ( AMZN ). Its “retail and cloud businesses are both inflecting … which we see leading to higher than expected profitability,” wrote Parker. — Microsoft. It’s getting a boost from “real top-line drivers,” says Parker, citing its Azure public cloud computing business, data center share gains and Office 365 subscriber growth and pricing. — IBM ( IBM ). While IBM is the only large cap U.S. tech stock with institutional ownership at five-year lows, Parker says investors under-appreciate “an accelerating transformation to a more analytics- and cloud-friendly business.” — Qualcomm. “We are overweight as we think recent concerns regarding the royalty and chip businesses are overblown,” said Parker, who expects improving licensing fees in China.

AT&T Aims To Outdo Verizon, Dish With Streaming-Video Offensive

Leveraging its acquisition of DirecTV, AT&T ( T ) announced today that it will roll out a national Internet-video service by year-end, a national video-streaming service tailored for mobile phone users, and a Web offering targeting millennials. AT&T says the “DirecTV Now,” “DirecTV Mobile” and “DirecTV Preview” products will be available in the fourth quarter. While Verizon Communications ( VZ ) has launched an ad-supported mobile video service, Go90, and Dish Networks ’ ( DISH ) “Sling” streaming service has some 500,000 subscribers, AT&T aims to set itself apart from rivals with a broad range of video offerings. AT&T surpassed Comcast ( CMCSA ) as the biggest pay-TV provider with the DirecTV purchase, which closed in July. AT&T had 25.4 million U.S. video subscribers as of Dec. 31 — 5.6 million fixed-line U-verse customers and 19.8 million satellite TV subscribers. AT&T has negotiated with content companies for digital streaming rights. AT&T says there will be limits on how many people can log onto the services via smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, PCs or other devices. It says consumers will have options to buy premium content for its online, or over-the-top, video services. “Having the largest number of pay-TV subs in the U.S. gives AT&T the scale it needs to compete in the OTT market, enabling it to acquire mobile and out-of-home rights,” said UBS analyst John Hodulik in a research report. “The ability to sell pay-TV subscriptions nationally is one of the keys to AT&T’s segmented mobile-video strategy.” AT&T in January announced a wireless product with unlimited data, but only for new or existing subscribers at DirecTV or its U-verse landline business in 22 states. AT&T did not say in its announcement today how many channels would be included in the new video-streaming products. “These new video subscription models reflect the flexible content choices, viewing options and simple, transparent pricing that consumers want,” John Stankey, CEO of AT&T Entertainment Group, said in the company’s news release. AT&T says its “DirecTV Now” product will be available via fixed-line broadband from any Internet service provider or AT&T’s wireless network, when bundled with a wireless plan. “Bundling OTT video with wireless should provide the stickiness that is missing from stand-alone OTT services,” said Hodulik. DirecTV Now will include on-demand and live programming as well as premium add-on options. The less expensive “DirecTV Mobile” package will be accessible from any wireless service provider. Some short-form content will be tailored for mobile devices. The ad-supported “DirecTV Preview” service will feature content for millennials, including video from Otter Media, a joint venture of AT&T and the Chernin Group. Verizon’s Go90 mobile video service is available as an app for any wireless network. Dish Network’s Sling is included in T-Mobile US ’ ( TMUS ) “Binge On” service, in which video does not count toward monthly data caps. Image provided by Shutterstock .