Mobi (company)

Mobi, Inc. is a wireless carrier founded in 2004 and based in Honolulu. The company provides service on each of the major islands of Hawaiʻi.[3] The company is an operator member of the GSMA,[4] the Competitive Carriers Association, and the Pacific Telecommunications Council.[5]

For other uses, see Mobi.
Mobi, Inc.
Industrywireless
PredecessorsMobiPCS LLC
Coral Wireless LLC
FoundedJune 30, 2004 (2004-06-30) in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi
Headquarters
Honolulu, Hawaiʻi
,
United States
Area served
Hawaiʻi
Key people
Justen Burdette, CEO[1]
BrandsMobi
MobiPCS
Serviceswireless telecommunications services
Number of employees
120[2]
Websitemobi.com

The company reached a network sharing agreement with Verizon Wireless in 2015[6] and later announced a nationwide 5G partnership with T-Mobile in 2023, allowing it to continue to operate as an mobile network operator in Hawaiʻi but as a "full" mobile virtual network operator outside of its own footprint.[7]

History

Mobi acquired wireless spectrum in the PCS band in 2004[8] and launched service[9] covering Hawaiʻi in 2005. Doing business as MobiPCS, the company and MetroPCS, were both backed by venture capital firm M/C Partners, with both disrupting the market in their respective regions by offering no contract, no credit check, unlimited wireless service long before those became widespread options in the wireless industry.[10] By 2008, Mobi had opened eleven retail and seventy dealer locations throughout Hawaiʻi.[11]

While the company launched with CDMA service (along with other members of the Associated Carrier Group) and had a roaming partnership with Sprint, it later transitioned to offering LTE and 5G wireless services.

The carrier operates its own retail stores in Hawaiʻi, and also has a small network of partner locations. To support customers digitally and outside of Hawaiʻi, Mobi was the first wireless carrier in the United States to support mobile recurring payments and eSIM activation through its apps for iPhone with Apple Pay and Google Pay (payment method) for Android.

Labor relations

In 2022, its frontline and digital workers in Hawaiʻi, on the mainland United States, in Canada, and in México unionized with the Communications Workers of America, which the company voluntarily recognized despite the common trend of union busting in its industry.[12]

References
  1. Hill, Tiffany (Jan 25, 2019), "Entrepreneurs & Investors Convene at Annual East Meets West Conference", Hawaii Business, Honolulu, Hawaii, retrieved Feb 13, 2019
  2. "Mobi to expand cell service to neighbor isles". archives.starbulletin.com.
  3. "Mobi PCS adds cell sites throughout Hawaii". bizjournals.com. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  5. "Mobi Relaunches With Simple, Affordable $9.99 Wireless Plan". bloomberg.com.
  6. https://www.fiercewireless.com/wireless/verizon-wireless-consumes-golden-state-cellular-and-mobi-pcs
  8. "Pacific Communications LLC and Coral Wireless, LLC". Federal Communications Commission. December 24, 2015.
  9. "New Hawaii cell phone company selects Honolulu data center". archives.starbulletin.com.
  10. "Investors are betting $50 million that Mobi PCS can use a customer-friendly business model to grab a big share of Hawaii's wireless-phone market". archives.starbulletin.com.
  11. "Sprint launches competitor to Mobi PCS | starbulletin.com | Business | /2008/02/21/". archives.starbulletin.com.
  12. "Local telecommunications company Mobi unionizes with support of CEO". hawaiipublicradio.org.
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