Comments on: Sprint CEO says Pre deal is longer than six months

Sprint Nextel CEO Dan Hesse throws cold water on claims by Verizon Wireless that it could have the Palm Pre on its network within a half-year.

[myles taylor]

If it's true, wouldn't he say that anyway to convince people who are thinking about waiting six months for the Pre to switch anyway? Either way, they're probably both lying and nothing is set in stone, but what do you expect...

[basraw]

i am busy saturday but will try to buy and probably won't have much luck finding one and therefore will be pissed off.

[rdupuy11]

I would dismiss what he is saying. Some people think if a contract expires in 6 months and 1 day, that you can loudly proclaim that the contract isn't for 6 months.

It's how some people think, its truly loathesome to deal with people like that. I suspect we'll find that the exclusivity arrangement was for 2009 -- a 7 month period, not 6 months.

So, just modify the statement to say 'about six months' instead of '6 months'....until I hear otherwise, the 6 month figure is essentially the true one.

[quantumsingularity3]

I agree. A CEO's job is to make money and everything they do is self-serving. Verizon is obviously trying to take some of the fire away from Sprint prior to the launch of the Pre and Sprint has to ensure that the Palm Pre is a success in order to stop the hemorrhaging of customers even if they have to lie, twist the truth just a little, or state the truth while omitting important details. As rdupuy11 stated, if exclusivity runs through 2009, it would be about 7 months.... which would fall in the "6 months or so" time frame.

[fletchb]

I left sprint for bad customer service, not what type of phones they had. During Katrina they refused to tell me over the phone if they had a replacement battery for my Treo unless I brought into the store. It was a mad house on the roads but I went anyway as I was getting out of town as fast as I could. When I am entering the store I see a mad customer leaving. Long story short-they didn't have a battery nor would they offer any temporary help (like a temp phone) so I would have a phone during the storm while on the road. To make matters worse after the storm, I called support to order a battery. It was just out of warranty so I was going to have to pay yet they refused to sell me a battery without my customer#. I was at work and had no idea what it was. Things got heated and I finally said "so you are willing to lose a customer over not knowing a customer #? Yep was their response and that was the final straw. Glad to see it's finally catching up with them and It couldn't happen to a more deserving company.

[caspiansails]

Why would you believe the six month story of the longer then six month story. Clearly Verizon is trying to dissuade folks from moving to Sprint with this device saying don't worry we will have it soon. Conversely Sprint would want to squash that message. One would think any carrier would want a year on an exclusivity deal in order to justify their ad spending and marketing for the roll out of what they think is a premier exclusive device. I am not saying I know it is a year but I would agree at least until the end of the calendar year. I would disagree with seven months or more being in the six month or so time frame. Or so is typically used to mean within a few days or up to a week of that timeframe. If it is actually going to be seven months or so then that would be the correct verbiage.

[rdupuy11]

well I'll answer your question, the CEO knows exactly how long it is, and if he wanted to say, he could have.

frankly people behave a certain way, usually for a reason. He would have greatly benefited by mentioning the 1 year timeframe, if such a timeframe existed, he'd have no reason to hide it, he just made an excuse and didn't do it....since he chose not to reveal any precise information, he expects us to make our best guess....so, I did exactly that...namely that its quite close to 6 months.

I agree with you that if its 7 months, then stating 7 months is naturally a better thing to say. But, when ballparking it to make a purchase decision, 1 month more or less, is fine, imho. For my purposes 6 or 7 months is exactly the same, because it has no bearing on my decision. If I can wait 6 months, I can wait 7, typically. Maybe someone could argue they need to know if its out by Christmas or not.

[StennG]

It is until the end of 2009. Since Palm delivered limited stock on in June it is 6 months and three weeks.
Hesse is playing word games. Six months and a few days.

[ParSeven]

Would all of the Sprint employees please refrain from filling this and other threads with propoganda about how great Sprint's network is, how wonderful their coverage and service are and how "strong" a company they remain. Palm developed this unit, not Sprint. It looks like it may be a cool device and OS, but if there's anything holding it back (and millions from buying it now), it's the current link to a teetering, desperate company with a dog of a network running cool but "island" technologies.

[jlaustill]

So I live in Montana, where Sprint doesn't even EXIST, but verizon does. I've been using Palm phones for so many years now it's unreal, and the Treo's have always been availible on multiple networks. By not offering the Pre to anyone but Sprint, which simply isn't an option for me, they take me out of the possible customer area. Even if my area did have Sprint, I would switch for a phone anyways.

So for now Apple wins, my iPod touch is just going to have to work for me along with my cruddy verizon phone. I despise Palms decision on this!!! I want to upgrade my treo 650 so bad I could scream. AT&T also doesn't exist here in montana, so no iPhone either.

[bimmin]

I live in Vermont where ATT just barely came this year (by buying another company). But they have no high speed data here yet. Luckily Sprint has EVDO coverage where I live. I cant believe you're still on a 650!! I had that phone, but then I upgraded to the 755p two years ago. Now i'm all set for another upgrade to the Pre tomorrow.

[Squashman2]

Lots of upgrades you could have done since the 650. I opted for a Centro right after that was released.

[myles taylor]

I just moved from Montana and had that same problem. I heard that AT&T is coming in though as my family is really excited about it.

[DosEquisXX]

AT&T is coming to Montana. They bought the markets that Verizon had to divest when they bought Alltel. So pretty much anywhere in Montana that Alltel has service AT&T will have service.

[Carrick1973]

If Sprint were smart, they would have signed a deal with Palm the way AT&T did with Apple and have exclusivity for several years. Each iteration of Palm hardware would exist on Sprint and all users would get upgraded software as AT&T users do. Palm might just have been on the edge enough that Sprint may have been able to garner such a deal. Of course, Verizon and AT&T will put out any and all statements that they can to get people to think that the exclusivity does not exist.

[bimmin]

The difference between Apple and other phone companies is that Apple gets a cut of every single persons service agreement. Thats why Apple has been able to have such a long contracts with ATT.

[lahelgren]

bimmin -

I thought that was only the case with the 1st gen Iphone. I don't know for a fact, but with the 2nd gen Iphone, but I think Apple charges AT&T more for the phone than a consumer buying it from AT&T (with AT&T getting their money back with the monthly charges).

[lahelgren]

---err, i should really read what i post :-(

[solu1978]

I have been using Sprint for the last week and so far .. i am happy with the service. I use skype over Sprints 3G and get almost the same result as over WiFi.

[jasonlackey]

VZW usually moves in a very well considered, thought out manner. I would be surprised if they were unclear when a certain device would be available on their network. I will be dropping by a Sprint store tomorrow to get hands on the Pre.

[Harlan879]

I've been using a Centro for 6 months or so now, and am quite happy with Sprint. Of course, I'm their only remaining customer in the NYC area, so that's not too surprising.

[cb3431]

Sprint has not gotten any better. I gave them a shot for a month and it's not that Sprint's service is bad, it just flat out doesn't work. My phone would ring hours after the person placed the call. Text messages were delivered out of order and hours after they were sent. This all happened last month. It's not even worth mentioning how bad their customer service is.

People aren't leaving Sprint by the bus load in hopes of finding a better phone selection, they are leaving because Sprint doesn't have a usable network.

Maybe Verizon and AT&T and planning on Sprint being gone in 6 months.

[TKE49]

That's about the biggest load of B.S.!

Sprint's EVDO (data) network is top dog in most parts of the country. Period. You simply can't beat it.

Text messaging has no problems whatsoever - unless we're talking about the iDEN network.

I don't know where you live, but most places in the country, Sprint's service rivals if not outperforms everyone else.

As for customer service, NO CARRIER HAS REALLY GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE. So if you think you're gonna get stellar service from Verizon and AT&T, you're kidding yourself.

[AJBopp]

Um, no.

Sprint's network, of course, works as well - and generally better than - any other US carrier.

Sprint's customer service is fast, friendly, and on target.

These sorts of comments only diminish the author's credibility, not Sprint's.

[oneAwake]

What *TKE49 * said!

[fletchb]

"Sprint's customer service is fast, friendly, and on target."

Not sure what you are smoking but that is the biggest load of bull....Their customer disservice is why they are going away soon.

[bj1126]

I have been amazingly happy with Sprint's BlackBerry customer service. They were friendly, knowledgeable and even called me back the next day to make sure things were working well.

[caspiansails]

I would strongly disagree with you on this. Sprint will not cease to exist as a company in six months they have too strong of a cash position. They could be bought out or something but not go out of business. I have had Sprint for ten years and not had a problem with coverage or issues for at least the last eight years. When I had an older Samsung from 1998 era I did experience some issues with calls being delayed but not in many years and never since I upgraded the old clunker. Sprint actually has a very usable network where I live and travel so maybe your issues are localized. My text messages are received very promptly. I live in the metro DC area and travel up and down the East coast as well as to the west and I never have issues unless I am out in the middle of the Arizona desert.

[clsmithj]

I've been using Sprint for several years now. It's service about the same as T-Mobile which I had prior except T is GSM while Sprint is on CDMA. Never tried Verizon. I will never try AT&T (Cingular) worst service ever.

[abcd9009]

As far as I can tell, no matter how successful Pre will get, it will always be #3 behind the iPhone and Storm. When it comes to consumers, especially in the US the most important feature for any product is "looks". So even though Pre has the best features, iPhone still rules because it's from Apple and that's all people want to hear - APPLE.
I know some might not agree with me but statistics are my proof that individuals don't care about the features (some might but that's just a fraction of the total demographic). Corporations on the other hand don't care about the looks but want all the features. They might be the true target audience for Pre. But then unfortunately Pre is on Sprint, the worst network when it comes to customer service (again a fact). Verizon rules when it comes to nationwide network coverage.
There is always a hype before any high profile product is released. The true test will be after the first month of it's release when the actual user feedback is available, not just those people at WS who are just speculating at this moment because all they care about is the share price.
With that said I wish Pre and Sprint good luck but let's be realistic. Pre will definitely beat G1 for sure, Storm, a BIG MAYBE but the iPhone - HELL NO!!!

[samkass]

The actual evidence is against your "looks" theory. The original iPhone and the iPhone 3G don't look very different. The second one sold vastly better than the first. Why? The app store. It makes the phone an order of magnitude more useful, and keeps it fresh all the time. The next-gen iPhone to be released imminently adds the ability for app store apps to communicate via the dock and access to more of the hardware, so expect even more innovation there.

The Pre's app store offering looks interesting, but the track record isn't great for competitors there yet. And with a billion iPhone apps sold, that's a lot of iPhone lock-in.

[abcd9009]

The BIGGEST difference between original iPhone and iPhone 3G is PRICE!!!

App Store comes in second.

[stewcanoe]

I don't think Sprint's network is really all that bad. Their customer service however sucks. I don't think AT&T's or Verizon's networks are that much better, but both companies work a whole lot harder at keeping their subscribers happy than Sprint does. I would like a Pre now, but I can wait for it to show up on Verizon or AT&T.

[monkeyfun14]

Sprints customer service has definitely improved in recent times.

[bradenisme]

the sooner this phone comes to verizon the sooner i buy it.

[caspiansails]

Get it now. Why wait and you can probably save money on your monthly bill.

[rdupuy11]

Yes, I guess exclusivity through 2009 would be 7 months, not 6 months.
The problem for Hesse, when he makes a strong denial of something that was essentially true, but just was off by a hair in the correct wording, is that people will remember him as some kind of liar.

We aren't worried about the exact wording of the phrase, we were wondering whether we can get the Pre from someone else in 6 months OR SO...and the answer to that is YES!

Maybe if you are a lawyer you'll appreciate the deception, but otherwise, c'mon.

[fletchb]

Their reputation is already well earned-he can only make it better doing something like that :)

[roncleaver]

Doesn't anyone remember how Sprint cancelled the accounts of soldiers in the middle east?

I was a subscriber for 2 years and cancelled it when my contract was up. Line quality was poor on the best day, consistently. Their customer service was abysmally bad.

All in all they are scum bags.

[coachgeorge]

"Last week, Lowell McAdam, CEO of Verizon Wireless was quoted by Reuters as saying that over the next six months consumers could expect to see devices "like the Palm Pre and a second-generation Storm" on its network."

Sounds like spin. What devices are "like the Palm Pre"? Many smart phones are. While I have not read the entire comment in context, this snippit seems like a comment designed to keep the faithful where they are and not jump ship to Sprint for the phone.
I have used all three major providers (ATT, Verizon, Sprint):
1-Each have their own strong and weak locations, despite the advertising.
2-Cust. Svs. is a challenge for all of them.
3-Each are trying to steal from the others while assuming their existing customers will stay out of some misguided sense of loyalty.

Frankly from my perspective, all of them are overpriced.

[oneAwake]

Regarding what Lowell McAdam said, he did not offer that comment on his own, he was asked a question about the Pre, what do you (in general) expect a CEO of a major company to say at an investors conference?

[caspiansails]

I would agree with you on the like the Palm Pre. He did not specifically state it would be the Palm Pre. If you want a Palm Pre anytime soon go to Sprint. If you want something link the Palm Pre - whatever that really means, then stick it out and find out what that actually means.... Besides, last I checked pricing for Sprint, if you want the full boat is cheaper then Verizon at present. Plus you can, I think, disconnect within 30 days if you don't like it. That is kinda of try before you are committed scenario.

[Sweatman15k]

Just thinking about how both CEOs could be saying what they feel to be true.

I would think that in the exclusivity agreement between Sprint and Palm there is a number of how many Pre's need to be sold (Say, X number in 6 months). If Sprint does not meet that number, then Palm could go to another service provider.

If I were Palm I would want some assurance that my hardware would get sold, especially when dealing with Sprint.

Sprint has been losing customers and so, if they don't sell enough product in say, six months, then VZWs statement would be true if the contract is broken.

But if Spirnt does sell enough, then the contract goes for another six months. Sprint CEO is speaking truth.

Again, just my speculation

[Sweatman15k]

Also, glad to see a better hand model in the photo

[ofmyony]

If any of these mobile operators want to say they got good customer service prove it.

Drop the 5 Gig limit on use.
Second, open up your 3G networks to 3rd party applications and services, like Skype.
Third, stop charging for sending and receiving text.
Fourth, have reliable service.

So with these conditions it looks like all the carriers have poor customer service. Let's hope I'm wrong but i doubt it.

[caspiansails]

Duhhh, you can use Skype on Sprint's network. I just saw someone post that earlier, unlimited text is cheap. the others are beyond what I know.

[ltonnews]

What folks are missing here is the Verizon comment was " like the Palm Pre" . That is *not* a statement will have a Palm Pre, but a statement that will have a phone that has webOS and similar features to the Pre.

Unlike Apple, don't really expect that Palm will ship one and only one model of phone. There are already rumors of a model called Pixie ( a candybar style). The HTC G1 (that Tmobile is selling) had a follow on G2 model come out in less than a year ( that hasn't arrived in the USA yet but it is shipping. So HTC has multiple designes in flight. ) Palm is selling phones in multiple market segments now also. They are likely to sell phones in multiple segments in the future too.


Would make sense for Sprint to have a lock up on the "top end" phone, but the phone they release into the volume market? Why would Palm restrict that to just one carrier if want large numbers. Whether a "Centro" format phone will work the same way with the same apps ( will the apps work with a relatively much smaller screen? The centro is available on all three networks http://www.palm.com/us/products/phones/centro/index.html )


Palm is going to have to master keeping lots of balls in the air while keeping quality high if persuing the multiple device strategy.

[vlabmarketing]

Interesting discussion! Pam Deizel (VP of Software, Palm) is gonna be at a talk in Stanford GSB http://www.vlab.org/article.html?aid=275. It might be a great place to ask her more questions!

[alljoe99]

i've been a sprint costumer for almost 4 years, and i was and sprint costumer back in 2000, in those days sprint services was really bad now if i compare sprint with the past has improved alot, im really happy with the services i have with sprint reception and more happy now that the palm pre is coming out sprint really better plans with att or verizon no doubt so if you live in cities where sprint offers its servivce you,d better get sprint if you want to save money you wont get that on verizon or att $99.99 for everything you could use on your phone thats good i know sprint will be go better with this phone .