Today is Telecom XT’s third birthday, as one fanboy pointed out on Twitter.
I agree it’s come a long way from The Disastrous Hammond Period. Today – thanks in part to $40 million in compo from Alcatel-Lucent being well spent – lots of mobile power users give Telecom’s W-CDMA network the nod.
But what’s it called?
These days, you see little mention of XT on Telecom’s website or, well, anywhere.
“You’ll see ‘the smartphone network’ more often,” Telecom’s Richard Irvine told Keallhauled.
“Our results show our smartphone network strategy is working for us. It’s a network custom-built for smartphones, and we know the name resonates with customers wanting a fast data experience on a 100% 3G network.”
The same W-CDMA network is also being sold as “Skinny” – an awkward sub-brand that began targeting ever yoof culture event going, is now doing double-duty chasing hold-outs on Telecom’s old CDMA network (due to close on July 31. In December, Telecom around 600,000 were still on CDMA). The average age of its marketing staff may still be around 13*, but Skinny's supermarket checkout signage seems more kitchen sink than rock-and-roll.
Now, what is Xtra called these days ... ?
* NBR estimate
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Happy birthday, XT – but what are you called these days?
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