T-Mobile (TMUS 0.57%) has made a habit of upending the wireless industry and forcing rivals AT&T (T 1.27%), Verizon (VZ +0.21%), and Sprint (S +0.00%) to follow along.
In its previous Un-carrier moves, the company did everything from abolishing overages to getting rid of contracts. In fact, each of the previous 10 Un-carrier events caused ripples, sometimes waves, that AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint had to at least take notice of, if not copy down the line.
That impressive history created big expectations for June 6's Un-carrier 11 and T-Mobile CEO John Legere did not disappoint, offering three new giveaways.
Legere seems to relish tweaking his wireless rivals. Image source: T-Mobile.
What is T-Mobile doing?
After taking the stage with his usual rock-star entrance, Legere was live in Times Square.
"We're doing it differently this time," he said, explaining that this was the first Un-carrier event broadcast directly to the company's customers. "It's all about thanking you."
Legere made a point of explaining that the new initiative was not a loyalty program. "It's not a scam to sell more crap," he said. "Our philosophy is totally different. We want to prove our loyalty to you, not the other way around."
He then introduced T-Mobile Tuesdays, an app that offers customers giveaways ranging from free Frosty's from Wendy's to free movies from Vudu -- something new every Tuesday. To get the free stuff all consumers need to do is download the app.
The first Tuesday giveaway, available June 7, offers consumers a ticket to Warcraft, a major motion picture coming out this week. The app also includes a game where users can win more prizes each week. "$31.49 in free giveaways this week," Legere said, "but you're worth it."
The big news is a stock giveaway
The key part of Un-carrier 11, Stock Up, allows T-Mobile customers to earn shares of the company's stock. Postpaid customers of the wireless carrier can earn a single share by downloading the T-Mobile Tuesdays app. It's also possible to earn up to 99 more shares of stock (100 in total each year) for referring family and friends to the carrier as long as they become customers for longer than 15 days. Customers who have been with T-Mobile for longer than two years will get two shares per customer referred.
To claim the first share, consumers must download the T-Mobile Tuesdays app before June 21, then they can claim their share by signing up with Loyal3, a fee-free web-based investing platform (the app takes people through the steps).
"I'm turning customers into owners," Legere said. "I'm giving a full share of stock to every primary account holder." T-Mobile stock closed Friday at $43.63 per share.
Customers who switch to T-Mobile also get a share. "Call it a welcome gift," the CEO said.
And one more thing
Finally, T-Mobile is now giving customers a full hour of Gogo Wi-Fi on their smartphones to surf, email, and more during any Gogo-equied domestic flight.
"Thank you everybody, and, we won't stop," said the CEO as he closed the event.
