Subsidiary of San Diego-based Leap Wireless International set to

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Apr 9, 2008 by Kelley Chambers

Cricket cell phones are set to begin chirping around Oklahoma City this week.

Cricket, a subsidiary of San Diego-based Leap Wireless International, provides phone and Internet service to customers who pay in advance for their service.

The company has had a presence in Tulsa for more than seven years, and is now expanding into the Oklahoma City metro area with five corporate stores, 53 authorized dealers, and eight Internet- only shops.

Jeff Rogers, Oklahoma City district director for Cricket, said the company decided to come into the Oklahoma City market after a long planning process, population density study, and brand recognition tests with local consumers.

The company does not disclose customer numbers by state, but reports about 3 million users in 23 states.

Cricket customers are not required to go through a credit check or sign a contract and customers pay for the coming month's phone usage at the beginning of that month.

Rogers said Cricket's plan is a hybrid between traditional phone service and pre-paid carriers. Traditional carriers often require a contract and users are billed for usage for the prior month. Pre- paid providers allow customers to buy a certain amount of talk time until that amount is exhausted.

Cricket users pay for the service and if they do not, or cannot, afford future service, it is discontinued.

Rogers said Cricket has built its own high-speed data network in Oklahoma and does not piggyback on another system.

Cricket's monthly plans start at $35.

"All the competitors now are coming out with a $99 all-you-can- talk plan," Rogers said. "That's been the cornerstone of our business since day one."

Andy Morgan, spokesman for AT&T Oklahoma, said AT&T also has two pre-paid phone options where customers are not required to go through a credit check or sign a contract. About nine additional companies also offer prepaid cellular service in Oklahoma City.

In one AT&T plan, the company sells what it calls a GoPhone, where customers pay for a set amount of minutes before use. For those with low usage, phone cards can be purchased starting at $15 and going up to $100, at 25 cents a minute for calls. Those with higher usage can choose a plan, without signing a contract, to pay $1 for the first call of the day and 10 cents for calls that day thereafter.

AT&T's "Pick Your Plan" program starts at $29.99 and does not require a credit check or a contract if a user agrees to have that money taken automatically from a checking account or credit card.

Cricket currently has a coverage area over a broad span of Oklahoma City and up the Turner Turnpike to Tulsa.

Rogers said the company will judge its success and evaluate the customer base on Oklahoma City before any further expansion in the state.