Sprint gains 720,000 new customers from simply carrying the iPhone last quarter

Sprint announced on Wednesday that it has sold 1.8 million iPhones during the first quarter in which the iPhone has been available on the network. Big news, but perhaps even bigger news is that 40 percent of all iPhone sales went to new customers on the Sprint network. That works out to being 720,000 new Sprint customers, just for carrying the iPhone on its network.

From the Washington Post:

Customers picked up Sprint iPhones in droves, likely in part because the carrier offers an unlimited data plan. There has been some speculation that Sprint may eventually do away with its unlimited plan as smartphone users consume more and more data. But the company is keenly aware that the unlimited plan is a great selling point for its network. “Our strong fourth quarter performance illustrates the power of matching iconic devices like the iPhone with our simple, unlimited plans and industry-leading customer experience,” said Sprint Chief Executive Dan Hesse in the earnings release.

If I was in the US, that unlimited data plan would be mighty enticing. It always blows my mind just how obvious it is that customers want the freedom of an unlimited plan, but carriers absolutely refuse to give it to them. I rarely use over 2GB on my data plan, and I’d still go for an unlimited option if it was available to me. The irony is that it’s not about the data being unlimited as much as it is about not wanting my carrier to clean out my bank account for going over once or twice a year.

If you’re interested in the ins and outs of the Sprint financial call, the company has posted a news release online for you to look through.

Joshua is the Content Marketing Manager at BuySellAds. He’s also the founder of Macgasm.net. And since all that doesn’t quite give him enough content to wrangle, he’s also a technology journalist in his spare time, with bylines at PCWorld, Macworld and TechHive.