Product, Service & Design Innovation
BetterWorld's 'Phone for Phone' Mobile Service Combines Affordable Plans, Social Impact

Socially conscious mobile provider BetterWorld Wireless, in collaboration with Sprint, today launches its Phone for PhoneTM mobile service, which will provide digital access to people in need by donating a mobile device for every qualified new US mobile customer.

Mobile devices allow people around the world access to information and opportunities that can empower them to create pathways out of poverty. BetterWorld is the first to apply the increasingly popular buy-one-give-one business model (see TOMS Shoes, Warby Parker and Plum Organics) to the US mobile market. For every new customer who joins BetterWorld Wireless, after three billing cycles, the company will donate a free mobile device via its giving partners — nonprofits and programs that have demonstrated exponential social impact through the use of mobile technology.

BetterWorld aims for the Phone for Phone donations to help generate economic and educational opportunities for women, girls and others in underserved communities in the US and around the world. Two initial giving partners that will distribute donated devices are Black Girls Code, empowering girls of color to become builders of technological innovation, and Worldreader, eradicating illiteracy by delivering a library of e-books to youth in low-income countries.

“We want people to love their mobile company,” said Matthew Bauer, BetterWorld’s CEO and co-founder. "To us, this means providing more than a fair price and high-quality service — it’s about offering a service that connects with our customers’ personal values."

BetterWorld also offers fair and transparent, usage-based pricing alongside traditional plans. With BetterWorld’s Just Plan, customers just pay for the minutes, messages, and megabytes they use, saving an average of 20 percent.

BetterWorld and Sprint will also help customers recycle their old phones.

"Sprint believes that doing good does work. Our support of BetterWorld Wireless and the social impact of Phone for Phone is the perfect example of these values at play,” explained Reggie Marable, Sprint Director of International Wholesale. “They are providing a valuable mobile experience for customers and for those in need. Sprint is proud to support BetterWorld as its network service provider, through the contribution of certified pre-owned smartphones, and by assisting with device recycling."

Individuals, Families, Nonprofits Can Buy One to Give One

Eligible US nonprofits can buy a phone to give a phone, while reducing their monthly mobile costs, leading to savings that can be used to advance their missions. For a one-time administrative fee of $10, eligible organizations receive an extra five percent discount on a plan of their choice. After the organization has been qualified on TechSoup.org, the nonprofit’s employees, volunteers, and even employees’ family members can access these benefits, available exclusively through TechSoup.

And thanks to a contribution from Sprint, BetterWorld has further sweetened the deal: The first 500 nonprofits to sign up with BetterWorld Wireless through TechSoup will receive a free, certified pre-owned phone. Click here for details.

To help nonprofits and causes thrive on mobile, BetterWorld and TechSoup are also offering content and training on how organizations can effectively use mobile to advance their missions, engage their communities, and advocate and fundraise for change.

“BetterWorld Wireless deeply understands the operational constraints of nonprofits and recognizes the value TechSoup Global can bring to improve access to affordable technology,” said Gayle Samuelson Carpentier, Chief Business Development Officer at TechSoup Global. “Half a million nonprofits around the world rely on TechSoup Global as a trusted resource for technology that supports their missions. Mobile is revolutionizing how nonprofits work. TechSoup Global wants to make it easy for these best practices and resources to spread, so that nonprofits can have a greater impact.”