For the first time, Opensignal is analyzing the network and market performance of Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs), compared to Mobile Network Operators (MNOs). In this piece we are specifically looking at standalone MVNOs — also known as "brand MVNOs”, due to their affiliations with big non-telco brands like retail chains. These MVNOs are wholly independent of owners of mobile or broadband networks, and buy capacity on a wholesale basis from mobile network operators. Excluded from this report are MVNOs owned by broadband providers, or MNO sub-brands.
Key Findings:
- Standalone MVNOs see slower download speeds: Our users on brand MVNOs generally observe slower download speeds than their counterparts on main MNO networks.
- Reliability is often comparable: Despite the speed gap, Reliability Experience scores for standalone MVNOs are relatively close to MNOs in markets like Germany, Italy, and the UK, suggesting that a reliable experience for MVNOs is achievable.
- Cost trumps speed for MVNO users: Opensignal’s U.S. Household Survey shows that MVNO users are significantly more cost-conscious than MNO users. Speed and network quality matter less than affordability for these value-driven customers.
- Brand MVNOs are gaining ground: In markets like the U.S., UK, and Mexico, brand MVNOs have maintained a Wins Per Loss (WPL) ratio above one for several quarters for Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) customers. This means they are consistently gaining more BYOD subscribers than they lose, unlike MNOs.
- Distribution is a key differentiator: The success of MVNOs often hinges on leveraging strong distribution networks, like in the case of BAIT in Mexico or iD Mobile in the U.K. This can be achieved through retail partners, loyalty ecosystems, or brand visibility — to attract and retain subscribers.
Table of Contents:
MVNOs: their place in the mobile ecosystem
Since the launch of the first MVNO, Virgin Mobile, in the UK in 1999, MVNOs have become a dynamically growing force in many mobile markets. According to Telegeography data, standalone MVNOs’ share in the total number of mobile subscriptions (MNOs and flanker brands included) was around 3.7% in December 2024. However, some markets saw much higher shares of standalone MVNOs in their retail markets — e.g. 13% in Mexico or 14% in the UK.
Globally operators are expanding wholesale access to their networks, whether due to the carrot of commercial motivation or the stick of regulatory requirements. South Africa’s MTN and Vodacom recently opened their wholesale networks and created enabling platforms for new MVNOs, leading to MVNO subscriptions more than doubling in the last three years, according to Telegeography estimates. The Nigerian Communications Commission granted licenses to multiple MVNOs in 2024. Regulators are generally supportive of MVNOs as a mechanism to increase competition and therefore keep consumer prices in check.
Faster speeds on MNOs than on MVNOs
Our analysis examined the mobile network experience of our users on MNOs and standalone MVNOs — across the following markets: Brazil, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Italy, UK, and the U.S. Across the analyzed markets, our users on MNOs generally enjoy faster overall download speeds than those on MVNOs managed by non-telco companies. This can be due to a variety of reasons, such as device mix, network prioritization of an MNO’s own subscribers, data speed caps imposed by MVNOs, limited access to network features (subject to wholesale contracts), or separate network infrastructure used by MVNOs.
Reliability of services often comparable between MNOs and brand MVNOs
Opensignal's Reliability Experience reflects the ability of Opensignal users to connect to and successfully complete basic tasks on mobile networks. Looking at the scores across the group of analyzed countries — the differences between brand MVNOs and MNOs are not always as stark as in the case of Download Speed Experience. Germany, Italy and the UK show very small disparities between these two groups for Reliability Experience, which means that the overall mobile network experience in these markets may be nearly as reliable for MVNO subscribers as for their MNO counterparts.
MVNO customers value cost over speed or network quality
According to the Opensignal U.S. Household Survey, standalone MVNOs’ subscribers attribute greater value to lower cost of services than their counterparts on MNOs’ networks. 76% of users on U.S. brand MVNOs’ point to cost as one of the most important factors for them to evaluate a mobile network, as opposed to 62% of those subscribed to MNO networks. Lower prices for MVNO services have always been one of the main attractors for switchers — and we can see this in our data, like in the case of the UK’s switchers to MVNOs. MVNO subscribers seem less concerned about speeds or network quality, compared to their MNOs’ peers. The cost-over-speed preference means a financial opportunity for MVNOs to target this niche and attract more subscribers from MNOs.
Despite differences for other factors, reliability remains a strongly valued element for mobile subscribers on both MNO and MVNO networks, placing second after cost. This is important as we’ve shown earlier that in some markets MVNO services are almost as reliable as MNO services. This is not the case for download speeds, which are generally inferior on MVNOs across the board. However, customers seem to care more for reliability than for speeds, as the results of our survey demonstrate.
Brand MVNOs are slowly gaining customers
With cost-conscious MVNO customers that value a reliable mobile experience in mind, Opensignal has leveraged across our panel of users to look at how standalone MVNO and MNO's perform amongst switchers. To do this we have used our Wins Per loss (WPL) ratio — the number of new subscribers a given operator has divided by the number of competitive losses. These numbers reflect only Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) switchers — those who keep their device after changing operators.
We've focused on the U.S., Mexico and the UK given the active role MVNOs play in their mobile markets. In the UK, MVNOs represent 14% of all retail connections, while in Mexico — 13%. In these three markets the WPL metric consistently remained above one between Q2 2023 and Q4 2024 for brand MVNOs. This means brand MVNOs gained more customers than they lost for the last few quarters across our panel. Meanwhile, aggregated MNOs’ scores are below one — for BYOD only — meaning MNOs lose customers at a higher rate than they gain.
MVNOs are slowly but steadily gaining BYOD customers from MNOs over time — with some successful stories like iD Mobile in the UK or BAIT in Mexico, even if their current market shares may not make them look like serious contenders. The cost of living crisis additionally motivates consumers to manage and optimize their regular expenses, including their phone bills.
Let’s take a closer look at these three markets.
Successful brand MVNOs have attracted acquisitions from MNOs in the U.S.
There are many MVNOs available in the U.S. market to consumers — including cableco MVNOs, which are not included in this report. Standalone brands like Mint Mobile have disrupted the market and attracted millions of customers. Mint Mobile’s success partly came from offering plans priced at much lower rates compared to other players and partly from Ryan Reynolds’ personal involvement in its marketing campaign.
Despite consistently winning more than they lose, brand MVNOs don't have a big market share in the U.S. This is partially due to driving lower acquisition volumes than major U.S. providers and also because MNOs often acquire the most successful MVNOs and turn them into their own flanker brands. This has happened repeatedly in recent years: Verizon purchased the then-biggest MVNO in the world, TracFone from America Movil, while T-Mobile bought Mint Mobile and Ultra Mobile.
MVNOs are much more focused on gaining new customers — especially in niche customer segments — rather than on retention. From an MNO’s perspective, this makes them attractive targets for acquisition. Buying an MVNO gives an MNO a way to increase their customer base and acquire a strong brand, without diluting their main brands. While these major acquisitions happened in the U.S., there are similar examples in other markets as well — Telstra has purchased Boost Mobile in Australia, KPN took over Youfone in the Netherlands.
Distribution channels matter in the UK
The UK is one of the most mature and dynamic MVNO markets in the world, having pioneered their introduction in the 1990s. With a regulatory environment designed to encourage competition and reduce the barriers to entry, the UK market became a fertile ground for MVNO innovation and growth. MVNOs now represent 18% of all UK retail connections, according to CCS Insights (excluding sub-brands).
An example of a fast-growing brand MVNO in the UK is iD Mobile. Consumer tech retailer Currys Group owns this operator – but it also owns Carphone Warehouse, a UK brand synonymous with consumer value. Carphone Warehouse has a wide retail footprint and strong online presence. This enables Currys to use both its brand and retail footprint to advertise iD Mobile plans to value-conscious customers looking for an easy purchasing experience.
The increase in iD Mobile subs is driven by leveraging Carphone Warehouse’s extensive retail channel. Its main focus is on providing affordable and flexible pricing plans, often without premium features offered by MNOs or other MVNOs. Tesco Mobile is another example of a niche MVNO. It integrates mobile plans with grocery loyalty programs to enhance customer value, drive customer retention and attract value-conscious users, while leveraging its massive distribution channel.
BAIT disrupts the Mexican mobile market
In 2024, Mexican MVNOs significantly increased their share of customers attracted from other operators, while AT&T and Telcel observed declines in subscribers ported from other networks, according to the IFT’s report. Walmart-owned BAIT is the fastest-growing MVNO out of the pack, having reached a market share of nearly 12% in Q3 2024 — a stellar growth since it launched its services in 2020.
BAIT has achieved this success thanks to leveraging its broad retail channel and combining it with a loyalty scheme. It operates on Altán Redes' wholesale network, which means it does not have to rely on the networks of MNO competitors Telcel or AT&T. BAIT services are well integrated with Walmart services through the retail channel Walmart’s reward system (Cashi).
Tough reality — what’s next for the brand MVNO market?
Some MVNOs, such as BAIT or Rakuten Mobile, have achieved remarkable success, leveraging innovative strategies and partnerships. However, others — like Sainsbury’s Mobile in the UK or FreedomPop in the U.S — have struggled to scale or differentiate themselves in crowded markets. Rakuten Mobile is a unique success story. It started as part of Rakuten’s Ecosystem offering (mainly driven by the eCommerce platform) and has since then developed into Japan’s fourth national mobile operator.
Competitive pricing and a unique offering are only part of the story. Strategic collaborations with major retail brands have also become a cornerstone of MVNO success and give MVNOs a fast lane to growth. This is especially important in very crowded and saturated markets, like the example of iD Mobile.
MNO-MVNO partnerships offer multiple benefits, such as new revenue streams, strategic advantages of accessing niche or segments, sustainability gains of utilizing unused capacity. 5G deployments give MNOs more capacity, with more spectrum dedicated to mobile services. Telecom operators are keen on working with MVNOs, as they allow MNOs to reach niche, typically cost-conscious, segments without compromising their flagship brand's pricing power or complicating their marketing message to consumers. There are additional financial opportunities to unlock, e.g. enabling B2B and IoT-focused MVNOs — although these are still very niche at the moment.
You can now find detailed data on the performance of MVNOs and sub-brands in our ONX product suite. And to stay up to date on the latest insights, reports, and events from Opensignal, please subscribe to our newsletter.
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