AT&T Prepaid
| Formerly | GoPhone (1987-2017) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Wireless telecommunications |
| Headquarters | United States |
Area served | |
| Products | Mobile telephony |
| Parent | McCaw Cellular (1987-1994) AT&T Inc. (1995-present) |
| Website | att.com/prepaid |
AT&T Prepaid, stylized AT&T PREPAID, formerly GoPhone, is a prepaid mobile phone service from AT&T Mobility.
History
The GoPhone name and product were originally conceived and implemented by McCaw Cellular by its founder Craig McCaw and first used in commerce in 1987 by his company. It was later bought by AT&T in 1995 and used by the pre-2004 "AT&T Wireless" after Cingular's purchase of AT&T Wireless in 2004 for $41 billion.[1] At that time, Cingular was jointly owned by SBC Communications (Southwestern Bell Corporation) of San Antonio, Texas, which owned 60 percent, and BellSouth of Atlanta, Georgia.[1]
The original GoPhone service was discontinued and Cingular renamed its prepaid services under GoPhone. The GoPhone brand name was still in use even after "Cingular" renamed itself "AT&T Mobility" until 2017 when it was rebranded AT&T PREPAID.[2]
As of January 2019, AT&T Prepaid has 6 million subscribers.[3]
Network
The AT&T PREPAID Pay As You Go plan allows users to refill their airtime at their own leisure by purchasing prepaid cards, or one of several airtime packages available through their refill site. AT&T PREPAID devices can connect to AT&T's UMTS/HSPA+/LTE networks. Some AT&T PREPAID plans have expanded messaging services to included with no extra fees. Text messaging is unlimited to the United States, Canada, and over 100 countries while using the AT&T PREPAID service within the United States.
AT&T requires 3G support for all devices on its network.[4]
The majority of AT&T PREPAID customers bring their own non-branded devices.[5][6]
See also
References
- ^ a b Rohde, Laura, "Cingular Buys AT&T Wireless", PC World, IDG News Service, Feb 17, 2004
- ^ "AT&T GoPhone is now AT&T PREPAID". att.com. Retrieved 2018-05-31.
- ^ "Cricket Wireless Now Serving 10 Million Subscribers". January 30, 2019. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
- ^ "Bring your own phone or tablet to AT&T PREPAID". att.com. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
- ^ "BYOP- Bring Your Own Phone or Device to AT&T and Save". att.com. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
- ^ "Bring Your Own Phone or Tablet to AT&T - Wireless Support". att.com. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
