As expected, Cox Communications is offering its own wireless service and it will even have some Android devices. Will Cox be able to go toe to toe with the likes of AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon?
Cox calls its wireless plans “Unbelievably Fair,” as users will get money back for unused minutes. I think the plans are about the even with what the other people are offering. Voice plans start at about $39.99 for 450 minutes and go up to $100 for unlimited minutes.
The company will also be offering texting and mobile data plans and these are also on par with what other major carriers are offering. You can get unlimited “basic phone and e-mail” data (whatever that means) for $15 a month, or unlimited data and text for $30 a month.
You’ll also be able to get a few decent handsets from the cable company, as it will be offering devices like the HTC Desire and the HTC Hero. These aren’t exactly the top-of-the line and may feel out of date at the end of the required two-year contract, but the handset selection could be much worse.
The main draw of this wireless service is the ability to bundle this wireless service with home phone, Internet and cable television. This is commonly referred to as the quadruple play, and it’s a service that is increasingly being offered by telecom providers like AT&T and Verizon.
Cox is going to be using some of Sprint’s 3G network for its service but it also has its own spectrum which it will be building out infrastructure on. Other cable companies are trying to dip into the mobile space but Cox is the only building out its own network for service.
For instance, Comcast is offering mobile data services but it just resells WiMax services from Clearwire. It will take years to determine which is the correct strategy.
[Via Cox]