In a bid to expand its footprint in the mobile carrier business, Dish today announced its second MVNO acquisition yet, having just completed its $1.4 billion acqusition of Sprint’s former prepaid brand, Boost Mobile, last month. Its target this time is Ting Mobile, a former subsidiary of Tucows Inc. (yes, that Tucows; it’s come a long way since its freeware downloading days).
As part of the deal, most of Ting’s customers were ported over to Dish at the start of the month. These customers will also have access to T-Mobile’s network, which Dish gained access to as part of its acquisition of Boost Mobile following the T-Mobile/Sprint merger.
That works seamlessly for Ting customers who were already on T-Mobile’s network, but one of Ting’s biggest draws was that it offered customers a choice between T-Mobile, Sprint, and Verizon’s networks when signing up. For those Ting customers who preferred Verizon’s network, though, transition details seem to be a bit muddier, as the company recently informed Android Police that it would announce its plans in this regard at a later date.
Ting’s parent company, Tucows, meanwhile, is undergoing a strategic pivot to become a Mobile Services Enabler (MSE) shop. That means helping other carriers with things like “billing, activation, provisioning, and funnel marketing.” As part of the deal, Dish’s entire mobile network will now avail Tucow’s services as an MSE.
“Today, we welcome Ting Mobile customers to DISH,” said Dish COO John Swieringa. “Ting Mobile is a great brand that stands for better value in wireless, and we are eager to begin delivering our award-winning customer service to Ting subscribers. Our agreement with Tucows will accelerate our digital and operational capabilities in wireless.”
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