Analyst and Adderton Throw Cold Water on Boost/MobileX Speculation
If EchoStar is to attract a partnership in the telecommunications space for its mobile network plans, Verizon makes the most sense, mobile analyst Roger Entner said Monday on the Recon Analytics podcast. However, Verizon already has a stable of value brands, he noted. Entner said EchoStar's Boost is gaining customers, though it's not clear whether that marks an actual turnaround or a short-lived "dead cat bounce." The company's 5G stand-alone core is "genius" and "deserves more customers," but EchoStar hasn't successfully articulated the value of it to users. Entner pointed to a report that EchoStar is in discussions with Boost Mobile founder Peter Adderton about some kind of merger of EchoStar's Boost Mobile and Adderton's MobileX. Adderton would be valuable in marketing Boost needs and providing an innovative platform, Entner said, but he's doubtful that Adderton would want to take part.
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Adderton wrote Saturday on X that it's "no secret that I would love to help the Boost brand get back to its glory days and that EchoStar like all Wireless companies needs a multi-brand strategy and that one brand cannot do it all." However, he said, his MobileX isn't in direct discussions with EchoStar. A MobileX/EchoStar combination "would change the landscape of wireless in this country," and the two companies "could build a combined power house of brands and networks with considerable synergies and scale," he said. "Do I think we could take MobileX and Boost to the number one brand in Postpaid, and Prepaid in the USA YES."