Yes, more and more celebrities are entering the phone business. Heres why
NEW YORK (AP) — More and more celebrities are looking to attach their names to your phone. Or rather, wireless services that could power it.
From cosmetics to snacks and signature spirits, brands launched or co-owned by high-profile figures are just about everywhere you look today. But several big names are also venturing into the market for mobile virtual network operators — or MVNOs, an industry term for businesses that provide cell coverage by leasing infrastructure from bigger, more established carriers.
U.S. President Donald Trump's family was the most recent to join the list with the launch of Trump Mobile this week. Here's what to know.
On Monday, The Trump Organization (currently run by the president's sons Eric and Donald Jr.) unveiled Trump Mobile. The company says this new business will offer cell service, through an apparent licensing deal with 'all three major cellular carriers" in the U.S., and sell gold phones by August.
Trump Mobile marks the latest in a string of new Trump-branded offerings — which already span from golden sneakers to 'God Bless the USA' bibles — despite mounting ethical concerns that the president is profiting off his position and could distort public policy for personal gain.
"This raises a real question about a conflict of interest,' said Ben Bentzin, an associate professor of instruction at The University of Texas at Austin's McCombs School of Business. As the sitting president, Trump appoints leadership for the Federal Communications Commission — and the family's new phone venture exists under this regulatory authority.
All of this sets Trump Mobile apart from other big names that have recently ventured into the wireless business. Still, its launch arrives as a growing number of celebrities tap into this space.
Just last week, actors Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett launched SmartLess Mobile, a name that mirrors the trio's 'SmartLess' podcast. Now live across the contiguous U.S. and Puerto Rico, SmartLess Mobile runs on T-Mobile's 5G Network.
Another wireless provider with ties to fame is Mint Mobile. While not launched by celebrities, Ryan Reynolds purchased an ownership stake in Mint in 2019. Mint's parent, the Ka'ena Corporation, was later acquired by T-Mobile in a deal worth up to $1.35 billion.
Beyond names of famous people, well-known brands that weren't traditionally in the phone business have also got in on the action over the years — particuarly outside of the U.S., Forrester Research senior analyst Octavio Garcia Granados notes. He points to Walmart's 'Bait' mobile plan in Mexico, for example, as well as Italian soccer club AC Milan launching its own mobile SIM cards for fans.
'The MVNO market is not new," said Garcia Granados. 'What's new is the development on how it's consumed and the (ease) for brands to launch such plans.'
MVNOs have also emerged outside of high-profile brands or launch teams. Bentzin points to Straight Talk and Cricket — which are now owned by Verizon and AT&T, respectively. Still, traditional celebrity endorsements are common across the board. And in recent years, 'influencer marketing" has been 'the fastest growing area of advertising and promotion," he notes.
For Trump Mobile, the pitch seems to be all about having an 'all-American service" while also tapping into the fan base of the president.
The company noted Monday that it chose to unveil Trump Mobile on the 10th anniversary of Trump launching "his historic presidential campaign.' The name given to its flagship offer, The 47 Plan, and the $47.45 monthly fee make reference to the president's two terms. And a mock-up of the planned gold phone on the company's website shows Trump's 'Make America Great' slogan on the front screen.
According to the company, Trump Mobile's 47 Plan will include unlimited calls, texts and data through partner carriers, as well as free roadside assistance and telehealth services. It also says the new phone, called the 'T1 Phone,' will be available for $499 in August — but notes that this device won't be designed or made by Trump Mobile. Still, the company emphasized that these phones will be built in the U.S.
Experts have since shared skepticism about that being possible in two months. And beyond the future T1 Phone, others stress that a monthly cell service fee of just under $50 is pricey compared to other MVNO options today.
'It's not actual lower pricing. It's really trading on the fan base, if you will, of Trump,' said Bentzin.
SmartLess Mobile and Mint Mobile, of course, don't carry these same political ties. And the wireless plans offered by both boast less expensive offerings.
T-Mobile-owned Mint advertises 'flexible, buy-in-bulk' plans that range from $15 to $30 a month. Each option includes unlimited talk and text nationwide, but vary depending on plan length and data amount. Mint, founded in 2016, says it started 'because we'd had enough of the wireless industry's games' — and promises to help consumers avoid hidden fees.
SmartLess Mobile's plans also start at $15 a month. Depending on the data amount purchased, that base fee can rise to $30 — but all of its plans similarly offer unlimited talk and text using T-Mobile's network. When launching last week, SmartLess underlined that its goal is to help people stop paying for the data they don't use, noting that the majority of data used by consumers today happens over Wi-Fi.
'Seriously, if your phone bill knew how often you're on Wi-Fi, it would be embarrassed," Hayes said in a statement for SmartLess Mobile's June 10 launch.
MVNOs have proven to be attractive acquisitions to big wireless carriers over the years. But whether or not the star factor promises significant demand has yet to be seen for the market's most recent entrants.
For the more established Mint Mobile, Reynolds' investment is a success story. The 25% stake that the actor reportedly owned in 2023, when the company announced that it would be acquired by T-Mobile, was estimated to give him a personal windfall of over $300 million in cash and stock. And since that deal closed, Reynolds has remained in his creative role for Mint and as the face of many campaigns — helping the brand continue to attract new customers.
It's no surprise that the potential of such business returns might attract other celebrities to make similar investments, Bentzin notes. Still, newer ventures are untested. And "as the market becomes more crowded, it could be harder and harder to pick off individual consumers,' he added.
Beyond a high-profile name, quality of service and what consumers can afford is also critical.
'The competition battleground here is brand and price,' Bentzin said.
Still, if the marketing is right and product meets consumer needs, experts like Garcia Granados note that MVNOs can be a profitable business, for both the brands that start them and the telecommunications giants — like T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T — offering this 'wholesale' access to their infrastructure.
As a result, he said, such high-profile ventures become 'a catalyst for others to follow."
AP Business Writer Bernard Condon contributed to this report from New York.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
19 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez tie the knot in star-studded Venice wedding
The wedding celebration of Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez culminated on Friday night when Sánchez confirmed that couple had tied the knot with an Instagram post, showing herself, looking ecstatic, in a lacy white wedding gown alongside a tuxedoed Bezos. She posted under the name Lauren Sánchez Bezos. The ceremony, marking the second marriage for both parties, took place in Venice's verdant San Giorgio island, facing the Doge's Palace, which the couple, and some 200 designer-clad guests, had reached via motorboat earlier in the evening. From the shores of an island opposite San Giorgio, the crowd was heard roaring on Friday evening, before Matteo Bocelli, the son of the Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, sang an emotional love song. The wedding of the tech billionaire, who also owns The Washington Post and is one of the world's richest men, came in the middle of a flashy three-day celebration in Venice, which had attracted huge attention — and some controversy. The guest list, which had been closely guarded, included friends, family, billionaires and stars, a crowd which began to arrive in Venice earlier this week on private planes and the occasional yacht anchoring in the lagoon surrounding the city. Attendees were captured by a swarm of paparazzi who patiently manned boats and other perches around Venice, and they ran the gamut from longtime moguls like Oprah Winfrey and Barry Diller to omnipresent cultural forces like the Kardashian and Jenner families. Hollywood was well represented, including by stars like Orlando Bloom and Leonardo DiCaprio, as was the world of music, with one-name performers like Usher and Jewel in attendance. Tom Brady, the former football titan, was there. And, as was to be expected for the wedding of Bezos, who created one of the world's largest fortunes by pioneering online shopping with Amazon, the guest list also included major tech figures like Bill Gates and Sam Altman, the founder of OpenAI. Despite his ownership of The Post, which has at times been critical of the Trump administration, Bezos has become friends with President Trump, attending his second inauguration with Sánchez. The president did not attend the wedding, but his daughter Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner, did, as did Kushner's brother, Josh, and his wife, Karlie Kloss, the model. The celebrations started on Thursday with a party at Venice's Madonna dell'Orto cloister, which was interrupted by a violent thunderstorm. The festivities were expected to continue on Saturday with a reception at a former shipyard complex. It remained unclear whether the couple were legally married in Venice or had previously signed the papers elsewhere. The authorities in Venice said they had not officiated any civil ceremony in the city for the couple. Requests for comment and clarification from a representative of Bezos, Neal Karlinsky, were not immediately returned. Vogue magazine confirmed the nuptials in a cover look released on Friday, with the bride in a dress by Dolce & Gabbana. The dress, with a mermaid gown silhouette and high neck, was inspired by the dress worn by the actress Sophia Loren in the 1958 film 'Houseboat,' according to Vogue. It was completed by a long white veil. While Stefano Gabbana from Dolce & Gabbana told Vogue that Sánchez had wanted 'to do a very classic and elegant wedding,' not 'something very flashing or bling bling,' the celebrations so far have not been modest. The couple chose one of the world's most ostentatious cities, where enormous Murano glass chandeliers can be seen through the windows of sumptuous palaces on the Grand Canal. They fully booked two of Venice's most lavish hotels, the Gritti and the Aman, for the guests, and commissioned dozens of motorboats, the only way to get around in a carless city. The scope of the festivities, as well as Bezos' wealth and connections, meant the city's authorities and business owners largely welcomed the events. But those elements also stirred the anger of many critics. Some Venetians and a broader group of anti-millionaires and climate activists staged protests voicing their opposition to the nuptials and Bezos' disproportionate wealth. Many saw the wedding and related events as the embodiment of the city's sellout to highest bidder, with Venice reduced to a glittery background for the photos of the tourists and the rich. Bezos' and Sánchez's marriage came after about six years of public courtship. Their relationship entered the tabloid limelight when a series of racy texts he sent her, dating to a period when both parties were married to their previous spouses, were published by the National Enquirer in 2019. Bezos later accused the Enquirer of 'extortion and blackmail,' in a post on Medium. Since then, the couple has had been a steady presence in the elite social scene — seen at dinners and galas, and on the pages of glossy magazines — with increasing visibility as their wedding approached. That included the short spaceflight Sánchez took on a Blue Origin rocket, owned by Bezos, with a handful of other prominent women in April. In a departure from the style of the couple's prenuptial foam party earlier this week on their yacht, Sánchez left her hotel on Friday wearing a cream skirt suit, a scarf over her hair and sunglasses, seemingly inspired by Audrey Hepburn. Little was publicized about the wedding celebrations, and what was released was meant to emphasise the couple's love of Venice and its artisans, including that they used local vendors. The choice of the wedding dress, Sánchez told Vogue, 'went from 'I want a simple, sexy modern dress' to 'I want something that evokes a moment,' and where I am right now.' she said. 'I am a different person than I was five years ago.'
Time of India
41 minutes ago
- Time of India
Senate Republicans seek to end EV tax credit by September 30
US Senate Republicans late Friday released a revised tax and budget bill that would end the $7,500 tax credit on new electric vehicle sales and leases on September 30 as well as the $4,000 tax credit for used EVs. The prior version would have ended the credit for new sales 180 days after the bill was signed into law, 90 days for used vehicles and immediately ended the credit for leased vehicles not assembled in North America and meeting other requirements. Republicans have taken aim at EVs on a number of fronts, a reversal from former President Joe Biden's policy that encouraged electric vehicles and renewable energy to fight climate change and reduce emissions. The House of Representatives version would allow the $7,500 new-EV tax credit to continue through the end of 2025, and through the end of 2026 for automakers that have not yet sold 200,000 EVs before killing it. The Senate bill also includes a provision to eliminate fines for failing to meet Corporate Average Fuel Economy rules in a move aimed at making it easier for automakers to build gas-powered vehicles. The Republican bill exempts interest paid on auto loans from taxes for new cars made in the US through 2028, but phases it out for individual taxpayers making more than $100,000 annually. Senate Republicans dropped a bid to force the US Postal Service to scrap thousands of electric vehicles and charging equipment in the bill following a ruling from the Senate parliamentarian. The US Postal Service has 7,200 electric vehicles, made up of Ford e-Transit and specially built Next Generation Delivery Vehicles built by Oshkosh Defense and warned scrapping its EVs would cost it $1.5 billion. President Donald Trump this month signed a resolution approved by Congress to bar California's landmark plan to end the sale of gasoline-only vehicles by 2035, which has been adopted by 11 other states representing a third of the US auto market.
NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
How Shefali Jariwala's Kaanta Laga Became A Major Pop-Culture Moment In The 2000s
New Delhi: In a tragic turn of events, Shefali Jariwala who shot to fame with her remix Kaanta Laga, has died at the age of 42. The actress-model was rushed to Bellevue Multispecialty Hospital but was unfortunately pronounced dead upon arrival. Her husband Parag Tyagi was seen in tears outside the hospital. While the initial reports have suggested that the actress-model died of cardiac arrest, official post-mortem reports are still awaited. Fans and industry colleagues are in shock as Shefali Jariwala was a big part of the defining remixes era in the 2000s. As fate would have it, she was spotted outside her engineering college by director duo Radhika Rao and Vinay Sapru. Little did she know that she was on the brink of doing her biggest project that propelled her to become an overnight sensation. In an older interview with the Times of India, Shefali Jariwala said how she teamed up with her mother to get her father's approval to be a part of Kaanta Laga. She had said, "My father was completely against it. So first, I took my mom into confidence and then, we both convinced my father. And that song turned out to be such a hit that it was like a fairytale for me. It changed my life completely." Sharing her excitement for Kaanta Laga, she added, "I was in college then and I come from a family of academicians, so my parents told me to focus on my studies. But I wanted to do it because I was getting paid for it. I earned Rs 7,000 from that song, and I wanted to see myself on TV." Rewind Back To The Craze Of Kaanta Laga Kaanta Laga was originally a part of the film titled Samadhi which was led by Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan and Asha Parekh. The song was then picked up for a remix version by T-Series for their album DJ Doll with an accompanying music video featuring Shefali Jariwala. It was like Shefali Jariwala had a natural pop-star vibe on camera. Something that also drew in the audience and the song was an instant click with them. Sung by Pallavi Kelkar and coupled with Shefali Jariwala's effortless dance moves, the song became a chartbuster in no time. Kaanta Laga is particularly remembered for it came at a time when the trend of remixes was just gaining momentum in Bollywood. This song had an integral role to play in revolutionizing that moment and emerged to be a pop-culture phenomenon that people remember to date. As they say, trends are a perpetual cyclic process, as it stands true with the remixes in Bollywood. While newer remixes and remakes have replaced Kaanta Laga in the Top 10 charts, Shefali Jariwala's career-defining moment is still considered a strong referral point in this context. It solidified her position in pop culture and also invoked a sense of deep nostalgia for the 2000s. While the bold frames were met with certain objectionable remarks, they continued to survive the test of time and remain a fan-favourite. Shefali Jariwala went on to do several other projects in the entertainment industry. She was a part of Big Boss 13 and Nach Baliye 5.
