JupiterResearch: Voce

Julie Ask airs her thoughts about the launch of exlusive MVNO Voce at the Jupiter Analyst Weblogs. She notes that Voce has a $1000 handset and $400/month voice plan, and points out her colleagues comments "that it is difficult to differentiate on quality of voice services. And ... who consumes $400 of service per month?" She wites:

Interesting though, we've spoken to a number of MVNO's. Some claim to be making money with only 10,000 or so subscribers. Others claim to need closer to 500,000. Helio says they have a target of 3,000,000 in about five years. At $1000 up front (but, hey, you don't have to sign a service contract by paying for at least a year's worth of service upfront) and $400/month, how many subscribers do they need to be profitable? If a $100/month MVNO needs 500,000, these guys may only need 125,000 subscribers. That said, Paris Hilton carries a Sidekick.

Ask does like the fact Voce offers "swapping phones more often than every two years. I like the idea of unlocked cell phones that allow you to carry one phone during the day, one to the gym, one out at night, one for traveling (with email), etc. If I were to sign up for this service, I would like a collection of handsets upfront (at least a couple) so I could swap the SIM card and phones. Oh, and I'd also like to take not only my list of contacts with me from phone to phone, but also all of the content that I've purchased, personalized settings, etc."