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Independent MVNOs are facing a brutal competitive squeeze, one that may threaten their very survival. At the center of the issue is a growing trend: major carriers, through their own prepaid brands, are offering truly unlimited 5G data plans at rock-bottom prices. Pricing has at times dropped to as low as $15/month (see expired Total Wireless and expired Visible promos of the last year), with $25/month quickly becoming the new industry benchmark. Yet, those same carriers often restrict their MVNO partners from offering similar plans, creating an unlevel playing field that may quickly become unsustainable.
Carrier-Owned Prepaid Brands Are Dominating on Price
Take a look at what’s happening:
- Metro by T-Mobile offers a $25/month truly unlimited plan with 5G access, exclusively for customers who bring their own device (source).
- Mint Mobile, which T-Mobile now owns, began offering a promotional unlimited plan at just $20/month, undercutting most MVNOs and even T-Mobile’s own base plans (source).
- Total Wireless, controlled by Verizon, continues to run an aggressive BYOD offer, $20/month for a basic unlimited line with a 5-year price lock (source).
- Straight Talk, also Verizon-owned, rolled out a $25/month truly unlimited plan aimed at BYOD customers (source).
- Cricket Wireless, AT&T owned, offers a $25/month truly unlimited annual plan to new BYOD customers (source).
- Visible, Verizon’s digital brand, now offers "Visible+ Pro" with truly unlimited 5G Ultra Wideband access at $45/month, and no deprioritization while continuing to offer a base unlimited plan for as little as $22.92/month when paid for annually (source).
MVNOs Can’t Compete Under Current Restrictions
These plans are attractive, but they come with a catch: independent MVNOs, which lease capacity from these same carriers, are prohibited from profitably offering similar truly unlimited plans at similar rates. They’re left selling capped or throttled data services, often limited to 35–50GB before major throttling kick in. When MVNOs are denied access to the very features that carriers offer their own sub-brands, they can’t realistically compete, especially not at the price points that used to be their stronghold.
But the story doesn’t end with price.
MVNOs Have Driven Innovation
MVNOs have historically thrived by doing things differently. Without control over network infrastructure, they’ve had to innovate in other areas offering features like flexible billing, multi-month savings, targeted plans for niche demographics such as immigrants and seniors, and bring-your-own-device simplicity. These differentiators have often filled gaps left by the major carriers, delivering real benefits to consumers.
Success Often Leads to Copying, or Acquisition
Take Mint Mobile as a prime example. It gained widespread attention by pioneering “wireless in bulk,” letting customers buy 3–12 months of service upfront at a discount. Paired with clever marketing from former part-owner Ryan Reynolds, the strategy resonated with cost-conscious and digitally-savvy users. The model worked so well that AT&T began copying the concept, rolling out its own multi-month savings plans via AT&T Prepaid and Cricket Wireless. Mint Mobile's success ultimately led to it being acquired by T-Mobile in 2024.
It’s not the only example. Verizon acquired Tracfone Wireless in 2021, gaining control of a massive portfolio of prepaid brands including Straight Talk, Total Wireless, and Simple Mobile, once some of the largest independent MVNOs in the U.S. Since then, Verizon has steadily integrated these brands and realigned them to prioritize its own network and pricing strategies.
What Happens When MVNOs Disappear?
The result of all these acquisitions? Fewer truly independent players in the market and a shrinking space for innovation. Sure we may have lower pricing on unlimited plans in the prepaid market for now, but how long do MNOs want that to last at the expense of undercutting their own much higher ARPU generating postpaid offerings?
When independent MVNOs are squeezed out, either through unfair wholesale restrictions or acquisition, the wireless industry becomes more consolidated and less dynamic. Consumers potentially lose access to alternative plans, cheaper prices, personalized service models, and disruptive features that push the industry forward. Ultimately, competition suffers.
Let MVNOs Compete Or Lose the Benefits They Bring
MVNOs have proven time and again they can grow markets and bring in users that carriers often overlook. But to keep doing that, and for the wireless market is to remain healthy, competitive, and consumer-friendly, it’s time for carriers to stop using access restrictions as a weapon, and let MVNOs compete on equal footing. Otherwise, the future of wireless may belong solely to the giants, at the cost of innovation, affordability, and real consumer choice.