(Part one of two)
It’s been more than a decade since Verizon popularized its Big Red nickname with a remake of the classic Big Red gum jingle. (Take 30 seconds and watch it if you’re old enough to remember the original.) Throughout the last decade, Verizon has dominated the U.S. wireless market, but 2022 has been a very tough year so far for the nation’s leading wireless carrier.
Wireless subscribers have been leaving Verizon for AT&T, T-Mobile and even for Verizon’s own MVNO partners, Charter and Comcast, both of which now offer mobile service. The Verizon network continues to win top marks from RootMetrics, but competitors’ device promotions, service discounts and 5G marketing have been luring customers away. By the end of the first half, Verizon’s lead in the postpaid retail wireless market had narrowed to less than six percent of its subscriber base.
J.D. Power’s U.S. Wireless Purchase Experience Study recently ranked Verizon last in customer satisfaction among Tier 1 carriers. The firm measured purchase experience satisfaction based on cost and promotions as well as the purchase process, collecting data throughout the first half of 2022.
Equity analysts David Barden of Bank of America and Craig Moffett of MoffettNathanson both downgraded Verizon’s stock price this summer. Moffett said on Verizon’s Q2 earnings call that some investors believe “the bloom is off the rose” when it comes to 5G revenue opportunities from services like private networks and mobile edge computing.
By Martha DeGrasse, Inside Towers Contributing Analyst
Veteran telecom industry editor and journalist Martha DeGrasse is an Inside Towers Contributing Analyst with features appearing monthly. DeGrasse owns Network Builder Reports and contributes regularly to several publications. She was formerly a writer and editor with RCR Wireless and a TV business news producer.
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