Push to Talk Popular with the Youth Market

The USA's Nextel Communications has announced that its youth lifestyle brand, Boost Mobile, signed up its one-millionth customer. Nextel introduced Boost Mobile to the U.S. in California and Nevada in September 2002 as a test program. Building upon the brand's success in these test markets, Nextel expanded Boost Mobile product availability in March 2004 to seven additional U.S. markets, including the New York Tri-State Area, Philadelphia, Florida, Texas, Maryland/Virginia/Washington D.C., Midwest (Chicago, Milwaukee, Indiana) and Minneapolis, and in October 2004 to three additional U.S. markets, including the Ohio Valley (Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton and Pittsburgh), Michigan (Detroit, Ann Arbor, Flint, Lansing and Grand Rapids) and Phoenix. Boost Mobile products and services are now for sale in 12 U.S. markets where approximately 163 million people live.

"With a $100 billion of annual spending power, young, tech-savvy consumers are an important source of wireless industry growth and we believe that our push to talk service will continue to differentiate us from the competition," said Tom Kelly, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Nextel. "We launched the Boost brand in the U.S. with a focus that was different from Nextel's traditional business, but using the same great network and same great technology. This formula is working beautifully, as evidenced by the one million Boost customers and the popularity of Boost Walkie-Talkie, which on average, is more than 50 percent of Boost customers' minutes of use," added Kelly.

"Since our U.S. service launch in September 2002, Boost Mobile's goal has been to offer a quality wireless product and experience to the high value youth segment," said Don Girskis, vice president and general manager of Boost Mobile. "From our new wireless phones designed to meet the lifestyle needs of today's youth to our strategic distribution, Boost continues to build a credible and authentic brand and offer products immersed in youth lifestyle and culture. Our strategy is working well with more than one million customers, and our tagline 'Where You At?' is being heard far and wide."

Posted to the site on 8th December 2004