FreedomPop

History

FreedomPop was co-founded by Stephen Stokols, CEO and Steven Sesar in 2011. Prior to founding FreedomPop, Stokols served as CEO of Woo Media, a video-chat and entertainment startup. FreedomPop partnered with LightSquared in December 2011, but ended its partnership after LightSquared did not receive Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval to build out its network. FreedomPop began selling 4G only hotspots in October 2012. The company began offering mobile and wireless internet services in the United States using Clearwire's 4G network. FreedomPop converted 20% of its free user base to paid users in December 2012.

In April 2013, FreedomPop partnered with Sprint to expand its coverage to include 3G and 4G with Sprint compatible devices. In October 2013, one year from its initial wireless broadband launch, FreedomPop launched its beta free mobile phone plan that included voice, text, and data service. In November FreedomPop launched a bring your own device for Sprint-compatible phones.

FreedomPop began supporting and selling Sprint-compatible iPhones in April 2014. The company also released an iOS app that offers voice, text and voicemail service to users within the United States. A month later, in May 2014, FreedomPop began supporting LTE Android smartphones. In July the company announced it would soon be offering SIM card-based plans in Belgium in partnership with Dutch carrier KPN. FreedomPop does not sell mobile devices outside of the United States.

In July 2014, FreedomPop began offering its free 4G data, voice and text plans to tablet users, starting with the iPad Mini and the Samsung Tab 3. The free data, voice and text plan is offered to those purchasing a tablet through FreedomPop or other eligible bring your own device Sprint devices.

In October 2014, FreedomPop announced its own branded-line of low-cost smartphones and tablets. The first release was a 7-inch Wi-Fi only tablet, the FreedomPop Liberty, which has free voice and SMS text messaging.

In November 2014, USA Today reported that Sprint Corporation is in talks to buy FreedomPop in an acquisition valued between $250 million and $450 million.

In January 2015 FreedomPop launched a new nationwide Wi-Fi plan, which lets you tap into a network of nearly 10 million Wi-Fi hotspots across the country for $5 per month.

According to the New York Times, FreedomPop has hundreds of thousands of subscribers and more than 80 employees. In January 2015, FreedomPop started the first aggregated nationwide wifi. The service offers consumers unlimited voice, text and wifi for $5 per month. In May 2015, FreedomPop announced an expansion into the UK with free mobile data, voice and text. The company will be operating through a sim-only service. In September 2015, FreedomPop announced free and low-cost iPhone plans in the United States and plans to sell the iPhone 6S in October. FreedomPop also announced the launch of its free mobile-phone service in the UK. In November 2015, FreedomPop announced a partnership with Intel to create a WiFi-focused smartphone. The smartphone will be based on Intel's Sofia mobile chipset and be able to switch between WiFi and cellular during a phone call.

In January 2016, FreedomPop added a roaming SIM, known as the "Global SIM", for free data abroad use in the United States and United Kingdom. Service is provided by a global mobile connection service Fogg Mobile which uses AT&T and T-Mobile as roaming partners in the United States. The company announced plans to expand roaming coverage to Southeast Asia and Latin America by the end of 2016.

In April 2016, FreedomPop announced that its services would become available in Spain, making it the company’s third supported country following the US and UK. FreedomPop launched its free mobile platform in Spain for users of the FreedomPop SIM in July 2016. By August 2016, the company offered zero-rated WhatsApp usage in more than 30 countries, including the US and Spain.

Funding

In July 2012, FreedomPop raised $7.5 million in a first round of funding led by Mangrove Capital and Doll Capital Management. The company raised an additional $4.3 million in a Series A1 financing from Mangrove Capital and Doll Capital Management in July 2013.

In June 2015, FreedomPop raised $30 million in a Series B funding round led by Partech Ventures with participation from Doll Capital Management and Mangrove Capital. The company announced $10 million in funding led by Axiata in July 2015. FreedomPop received an investment from Intel in November 2015, which the company planned to use to build out a new broadband service to rival Google Project Fi.

In January 2016, six months after its Series B round of $36 million, FreedomPop raised $50 million in a Series C round for global expansion of its services. The company has raised a total of $109 million.

Networks

FreedomPop uses Sprint's network in the United States. In 2015 the company announced its plans to expand internationally to the UK on Three's network. In early 2016, FreedomPop launched a global SIM with Free mobile data across 25 countries, including the US and UK. In late 2016, FreedomPop launched an LTE SIM utilizing AT&T's network.

Reception

The service offered by FreedomPop is designed for "light users", while paid options include unlimited talk and text with an option to add high-speed data. The "Unlimited Everything Plan" introduced in May drops from 4G LTE data to 3G after 1GB of data is used within a billing cycle. In June 2015, this drops to 256kbit/s for users that signed up before June 2015 or 128kbit/s for users who signed up after June 2015. The service is only available in select locations. The carrier reportedly has good coverage, though the call quality "can be an issue," according to Clark Howard.

Jared Newman, a TIME reporter, reviewed FreedomPop's core service in June 2013. Newman reported that some service fees were not clearly noted on FreedomPop's homepage. FreedomPop responded to the criticism by waiving the active status fee for new users as of July 2013.

In 2015, The Economist recognized FreedomPop and its "Wi-Fi first" technology, noting that the company developed the idea for its customers to send texts and make calls over Wi-Fi connections primarily when available. According to an Engadget report, FreedomPop's SIM-only service in the UK had strong signal quality with minor call quality issues and is meant for light streamers. The report noted that the service is a "seriously attractive alternative" to major carriers.