Virgin Mobile looking to merge with Helio?

by Nilay Patel posted May 8th 2008 at 2:56PM

Times haven't been so great at Helio, but it looks like the troubled MVNO could be snapped up by Virgin Mobile. mocoNews did a little digging after Virgin's recent Q1 conference call, and says that the two companies are currently in merger talks. Since both companies use Sprint's network, the tech would be compatible, and the deal would give SK Telecom a way to keep Helio going as it tries to gain a foothold in the US market. Nothing's set in stone yet and the two companies aren't talking, but we'll definitely keep an eye on this one.

Filed under: Helio, Virgin Mobile, MVNOs

Tags: breaking news, BreakingNews, merge, merger

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

frank @ May 8th 2008 3:54PM

So basically, the carrier with the best phones merging with the carrier with the worst phones. Interesting.

Neutral

youngcalihottie @ May 8th 2008 6:45PM

and a carrier making money merging with a carrier not making money lol

i dont see how it would benefit virgin. why the extra burden? like when sprint bought nextel. this would be that again. except they at least have compatible tech.

virgin targets teens with prepaid. helio targets koreans and unlimited users with postpaid. i dont get the match?

Neutral

Jamar @ May 9th 2008 1:25AM

Well, for one, Virgin seems to have a crappy phone lineup, which Helio would help with.

Neutral

Daniel @ May 9th 2008 2:35AM

Best phones? I've never found any of Helio's phones appealing although they had some pretty cool apps.

Helio's customer service group has to be among the worst in the industry.

Neutral

MinceyFresh @ May 8th 2008 6:24PM

I was really hoping to see KDDI Mobile and Helio eventually merge... But yeah... It would be interesting to see where this merger is going.

Neutral

tristate @ May 8th 2008 7:29PM

Helio runs on Verizon's Network.... not Sprint's....

Neutral

Roger Alford @ May 9th 2008 12:39PM

The old company AMP'd ran on Verizon. Helio has ALWAYS run on Sprint. It relies on Sprint not only for its primary voice, but also its 1xRTT and EV-DO data.

It ROAMS VOICE ONLY on Verizon - if there is NO Sprint AT ALL.
There is NO data on Verizon.

As for Alltel and US Cellular - Ive heard mixed reviews, some say it HAS data some say it does not.

But yes, Helio is a Sprint Network MVNO

Neutral

Pilot101 @ May 8th 2008 8:29PM

@tristate

Get' your facts straight before trying to fix other people's points. Helio primarily leases from Sprint but it can also roam on other networks such as alltel or verizon wireless

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helio_%28wireless_carrier%29

Neutral

David @ May 14th 2008 12:36PM

@ Daniel. That is completely true. I have never had worse service in my life in the 10 years ive had a cell phone than Ive had in the last 2 years at helio.

Neutral

Momma Bear @ Jul 23rd 2008 6:28PM

They have the worst customer service because the people don't speak english that well and it's based in the phillipines or russia or something.

The tech support is where it's at. American or very well spoken english always when I call.

Love my Ocean and the add ons :)