Tons of of smartphone promotions throughout US carriers in October 2025 illustrate an intensifying battle for subscribers.
Through the month, telcos, OEMs and retailers launched 623 promotions. Throughout 12 promo sorts, trade-in credit and improve offers had been probably the most prevalent techniques, underscoring the business’s reliance on gadget subsidies to entice prospects.
Verizon, T-Cellular, and AT&T ran most of those gives, far outpacing cable MVNOs Spectrum Cellular and Xfinity Cellular. Samsung and Apple gadgets dominated promotions, confirming that flagship telephones stay the important thing draw for shoppers.
Every operator took a definite strategy. Verizon leaned on massive trade-in rebates and free content material add-ons (akin to streaming subscriptions) to drive uptake of its premium limitless plans.
T-Cellular tied its largest reductions to its priciest plan tiers (like Go5G), successfully elevating buyer spend in return for brand spanking new gadgets.
AT&T favoured an easier, loyalty-focused technique: it prolonged high-value trade-in gives uniformly to new and present prospects with out requiring the top-tier plan.
In the meantime, Spectrum and Xfinity relied on trade-in offers tied to their highest limitless tiers to entice broadband subscribers into including cell traces.
Outcomes rely
These techniques delivered tangible ends in Q3 2025. T-Cellular logged 1 million postpaid cellphone internet provides – the business’s highest – and saved churn at simply 0.89%, validating its upsell technique. Verizon’s value-packed gives saved postpaid cellphone churn round 0.91% and boosted gadget gross sales. AT&T added 405,000 postpaid cellphone prospects with equally low churn (0.92%), and 41% of its fibre broadband customers now additionally use AT&T wi-fi service. Spectrum and Xfinity added practically 900,000 mixed cell traces within the quarter, driving roughly 20% year-over-year development of their cell revenues and underscoring the success of their convergence technique.
Technique outlook – promotions stay widespread
In abstract, promotions have turn into a cornerstone of provider development technique. Customers profit from unprecedented gadget bargains and perks – albeit sometimes tied to premium plans or bundles.
The important thing problem now could be balancing aggressive acquisition offers with loyalty rewards to maintain momentum. Increasing the combo of promotional perks past streaming and partnering with gadget makers to assist beneficiant trade-in credit, can additional differentiate carriers with out overcomplicating plans. Carriers that refine promotions to serve each new and constant prospects will probably be greatest positioned to develop subscribers and income whereas retaining churn in examine.
Given the finite pool of wi-fi prospects, this promotional arms race is unlikely to sluggish, compelling all suppliers to maintain innovating on offers and bundles to keep up an edge.
