Pocket Communications
Encyclopedia
Personal Communications Service
At the most basic level Personal Communications Service or PCS describes a set of wireless communications capabilities that allows some combination of terminal mobility, personal mobility, and service profile management...
CDMA 1xRTT provider of unlimited cellular phone service based in San Antonio, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It offered service plans similar to those of Cricket Communications
Cricket Communications
Cricket Communications, Inc. founded in 1999, also known as Cricket Wireless, provides wireless services to 7 million customers in the United States. The company is a subsidiary of Leap Wireless, utilizing its CDMA 1X and 1xEV-DO networks...
and MetroPCS
MetroPCS
MetroPCS Communications, Inc. , formerly known as General Wireless, Inc., is an American mobile phone service provider. It operates the fifth largest mobile telecommunications network in the US, with 8.9 million subscribers as of May 2011...
which mostly consist of unlimited local phone service without having to sign up for long-term contracts at very affordable prices compared with other major national cellular carriers. It was merged with Cricket Communications in late 2010, with Cricket holding an initial 76% stake in the joint venture
Joint venture
A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...
and Pocket holding 24%.
History
Pocket Communications began in San Antonio, TX in June 2006, including the Pocket mascot Harry the chimp and has followed an expansion strategy towards south Texas ever since. Besides covering the greater San Antonio area, they service to the north along major roads, reaching as far as Fredericksburg, TexasFredericksburg, Texas
Fredericksburg is the seat of Gillespie County, in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 Census estimate, the city had a population of 10, 530...
, and to the south including Laredo, Texas
Laredo, Texas
Laredo is the county seat of Webb County, Texas, United States, located on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. According to the 2010 census, the city population was 236,091 making it the 3rd largest on the United States-Mexican border,...
and the Rio Grande Valley
Rio Grande Valley
The Rio Grande Valley or the Lower Rio Grande Valley, informally called The Valley, is an area located in the southernmost tip of South Texas...
. Also, an unconfirmed call to Pocket customer service suggests that other major Texas markets will be covered in the future. Pocket started service in Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
and Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
. Pocket seems to pursue a monolithic coverage model like Sprint or T-Mobile, where all markets are connected by cellular coverage, rather than having islands of service across the nation like MetroPCS and Cricket do. They have now released roaming capability via a partnership with MetroPCS to boost coverage and sold at most Pocket stores in Rio Grande valley and San Antonio TX in over 120 locations including 42 local HEB stores. According to information advertised by Pocket over 170,000 have subscribed to its first month free service as of May 12, 2008, just after twenty months of being in the business. 1xRTT data access was available while unlimited directory assistance was also available at an additional charge. Additionally, Pocket offers a prepaid funds account, also known as the Value Pocket, from which can be drawn such features as international calling, long distance, outgoing text messaging (incoming messages are free) and picture messages if such features are not added to the subscriber's plan. Pocket recently expanded its operations to the northeastern part of the United States adding a regional headquarters in Bloomfield, CT and are now in the process of extending their coverage to Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties. The MSA population in 2008 was 416,376. The population was 305,215 at the 2010 census making it the...
. In September 2010, Pocket announced that they would shutter their operations in Connecticut and Massachusetts due to the weak economy, competition and high cost of building an infrastructure. Pocket announced that service in these areas would be discontinued in late October.
Joint Venture
October 1 Leap (Cricket) acquires Pocket Communications South Texas market.http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/leap-forges-jv-pocket-communications/2010-02-23
Markets
The current markets in Texas for Pocket Communications include San AntonioSan Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
, Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties. The MSA population in 2008 was 416,376. The population was 305,215 at the 2010 census making it the...
, Laredo
Laredo, Texas
Laredo is the county seat of Webb County, Texas, United States, located on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. According to the 2010 census, the city population was 236,091 making it the 3rd largest on the United States-Mexican border,...
, and the Rio Grande Valley
Rio Grande Valley
The Rio Grande Valley or the Lower Rio Grande Valley, informally called The Valley, is an area located in the southernmost tip of South Texas...
.
Pocket has also served Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
, New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
, Waterbury, Connecticut
Waterbury, Connecticut
Waterbury is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, on the Naugatuck River, 33 miles southwest of Hartford and 77 miles northeast of New York City...
, and Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
markets which are due to close at the end of October 2010, as Pocket Communications withdraws from Connecticut and Massachusetts.
See also
- Leap WirelessLeap WirelessLeap Wireless International, Inc. is an American public telecommunications company that provides wireless services through its subsidiary, Cricket Communications...
, Parent Company of- Cricket CommunicationsCricket CommunicationsCricket Communications, Inc. founded in 1999, also known as Cricket Wireless, provides wireless services to 7 million customers in the United States. The company is a subsidiary of Leap Wireless, utilizing its CDMA 1X and 1xEV-DO networks...
- Jump MobileJump MobileJump Mobile was a mobile cellular communications brand and subsidiary of United States based Leap Wireless International, Inc. From its inception in 2005, Jump Mobile grew to offer pre-paid wireless services customers in 25 states...
- Cricket Communications
- MetroPCSMetroPCSMetroPCS Communications, Inc. , formerly known as General Wireless, Inc., is an American mobile phone service provider. It operates the fifth largest mobile telecommunications network in the US, with 8.9 million subscribers as of May 2011...
- Revol Wireless