DALLAS � 7-Eleven, Inc., this month willl become the first retailer to launch its own prepaid wireless service using major names in the cell-phone industry, according to a report on NACS Online.
Kevin Cooper, retail services category manager for 7-Eleven, said the service, 7-Eleven Speak Out, will be priced at 20 cents a minute, including domestic, long distance and on-network roaming.
The new 7-Eleven wireless service will provide customer care in Spanish as well as English.
7-Eleven conducted a proof-of-technology test of its prepaid wireless service in 65 stores in the Fort Worth, Texas, area last fall, and then expanded the test to 250 stores in the greater Dallas area, according to NACS Online.
After some tweaking, the program is now being offered in selected 7-Eleven stores in 14 other markets. 7-Eleven plans to roll out the program to the majority of the rest of its 5,300 U.S. company-operated and franchised stores in the United States later this summer.
"Some 6 million people shop daily in 7-Eleven stores," Cooper said. "So the potential for exposure and sales of this low-cost prepaid wireless service is significant."
7-Eleven has an agreement with Dallas-based Ztar (pronounced "star") mobile Inc., a Mobile Virtual Network Enabler (MVNE), to manage its prepaid wireless program and provide ongoing services to include wireless airtime, long distance and customer care. For the 7-Eleven Speak Out wireless program, Ztar uses the Cingular Wireless nationwide network and Nokia mobile phones.
Customers can purchase either a Nokia 3560 handset with color screen for $89.99 (after a $50 rebate) or the Nokia 2260 for $49.99 (after a $50 rebate). 7-Eleven Speak Out wireless refill cards are available in various dominations at participating 7-Eleven stores. When customers refill their accounts within 120 days, unused minutes will roll over to the new balance. The starter package includes 50 minutes of free nationwide airtime (a $10 value).
The program also offers international calling to more than 200 countries around the world. The charge for in-network calls to Canada and Mexico is 39 cents a minute, a competitive price compared with most prepaid wireless services, 7-Eleven said.
Several ATM manufacturers have modified their software to allow deployers to offer prepaid wireless at ATMs, or have plans to do so. The service is currently being offered on some 800 ATMs in the U.S., by deployers including E*Trade Access.
