INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
In other news, Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds has invested an undisclosed amount in a company selling prepaid phone plans called Mint
Mobile.
It all sounds like a weird sponsored Instagram post, but a source tells TechCrunch that Reynolds now owns more than 25% of the
company with this recent investment
What he invested is thoroughly unclear and a Mint Mobile spokesperson did not comment on the company valuation.
Mint Mobile is a mobile
virtual network operator, meaning the company does not actually own the network infrastructure it operates on
It uses T-Mobile cellular infrastructure
The MVNO launchedbeneath Costa Mesa, California-based Ultra Mobile in 2016 and the brand was only recently incorporated as its own entity
Ultra Mobile CEO David Glickman is also the CEO of Mint Mobile.
MVNOs are vehicles to create a new carrier brand without having to worry
about most structural barriers of entry
As the T-Mobile and Sprint deal wraps up and T-Mobile scrappy &uncarrier& marketing slows down, there may be more attention being paid to
these smaller MVNO entities.
Ultra Mobile has carved out a niche focusing largely on prepaid plans for low-income immigrants in the United
The company online-only Mint Mobile brand seems to have been an effort for the company to bring a younger demographic onto its service
The company sells 3, 6 and 12-month prepaid blocks of wireless service, their cheapest regular-priced option being a $15 per month plan
(billed annually).
Bringing Reynolds onboard certainly seems to be an effort to bring a star with a substantial social media following into
the fold.Celebrity deals where recognizable names put up some cash and supply a big PR boost for the startup are far from rare
Andreessen Horowitz has built an entire fund around getting celebrities into startup deals
Retired NFL running back Marshawn Lynch is the public face of Beast Mobile, another MVNO.
&Celebrities generally invest in high-end products
like skincare brands or delicious gin companies,& Reynolds said in a press release
&Yet Mint is making wireless way more affordable at a time when the average American is paying 65 dollars a month.& Reynolds is also an
owner of Aviation Gin.
Disclosure: TechCrunch is owned by Verizon Wireless.
