Checking the mailbox the other day I found an envelope from CREDO Mobile — a company I’ve never heard of before — that has the following question right on the front: Is your cell phone supporting right-wing causes?
I hadn’t thought about it before, but I assumed it probably did seeing as the wife and I currently use AT&T. Mainly because it used to be Cingular until they got bought out and we just hadn’t bothered to look into alternatives yet. I’ve written blog entries critical of AT&T in the past so it’s not like I’m particularly beholden to the company, but the switch was pretty transparent and there haven’t been any developments to piss me off and make me consider switching so we just haven’t done so.
As an interesting aside, the blog entry I linked to is about AT&T’s TOS for their Internet service which, back in 2007, said they could terminate your service if you said anything bad about it. I didn’t use AT&T at the time, but I do today as I have their U-Verse service because the only other alternative here in Ann Arbor is Comcast and I hate the latter more than the former at the moment.
Anyway I open up the letter to find the following:
Dear Fellow Progressive,
ls your mobile phone company supporting right-wing politicians? You might be surprised to know the answer.
AT&T not only contributed the legal maximum to Bush-Cheney, it also recently gave $1 million to the George W. Bush Foundation to help pay for the Bush Presidential Library. AT&T is also the top contributor to the members of the House Tea Party Caucus, a veritable rogue’s gallery of representatives trying to abolish nearly every environmental safety and consumer protection law on the books.
If you’re a customer of Verizon Wireless, you should know they have contributed to Senator Tom Coburn (R—Okla.), who has called for the death penalty for doctors who performs abortions. (See our chart on the back for more examples.)
But the good news is that your cell phone can support the progressive causes you care about. ln fact, at CREDO Mobile we put your cell phone to work for the progressive organizations you help choose!
Now I’d be lying if I tried to claim that this didn’t catch my attention. Sure, on some level I’m aware that AT&T and Verizon contribute heavily to the Republican party for the obvious reason that the Republicans are much more friendly to Big Business™, but I hadn’t really considered the idea of voting with my pocketbook in some way. Hell, I didn’t know it was an option.
So I kept reading:
CREDO Mobile is brought to you by Working Assets. In addition to providing great phone service, we fight tirelessly on our members’ behalf for progressive causes.
Since 1985, CREDO has delivered over $65 million to nonprofit groups like the ACLU, Planned Parenthood, Natural Resources Defense Council and Doctors Without Borders. We’re also the only mobile phone company as committed to the planet as you are. We were the first to offset the carbon emissions for every phone we ship and we print our bills on 100% post-consumer recycled paper. In fact, unlike any other phone company, we plant 100 trees for every ton of paper we use.
Plus, we offer everything you’d expect from a first-rate carrier, and switching to our comprehensive service couldn’t be simpler. With CREDO Mobile, you get:*
- Contract buyout credit (up to $200 each for a total of three lines) and your choice of phone
- 25% off your monthly service fee for a year
- Special deals like 1,000 anytime minutes plus 1,000 texts for just $59.99 per month, and our new smartphone powered by Android™, the HTC Hero™ with Google™, for $79.99
- All calls carried on the nationwide Sprint® network, reaching more than 280 million people
- No contract for the first 30 days**
- Free shipping
- Ability to keep your current phone number
- Friendly customer service representatives standing by to answer all your questions
And, of course, you’ll also get the things that only CREDO Mobile can give.
For instance, part of your bill will be donated automatically, at no extra cost to you, to dedicated nonprofit groups you help select. And you”ll be part of our highly effective citizen lobbying program. We’ll send you alerts on issues of urgent concern to the progressive community and provide easy ways to take action.
With a president proving to be more centrist than his campaign promises, and with the clamor ofthe tea party on the rise, we can’t afford to slack in our fight for reform. We can enact a progressive overhaul of this badly damaged nation, but only if we use all of the resources at hand. And that includes our cell phones.
Sound pretty good doesn’t it? Of course that didn’t stop my skeptical nature from raising a few red flags starting with the fact that I’ve never heard of this company before. And, judging from the Google search I did of the company, not a lot of other people have heard of them before either as there are a lot of articles with similar titles to the one I’m writing now. Checking in on some of them gives you a mixed bag of opinions. Some folks say they suck and others say they’re great, but there doesn’t appear to be much of a consensus.
The other red flag that popped up is the fact that they criticize AT&T and Verizon, but not Sprint. You probably noticed in the bullet points that they’re carried on the Sprint network which probably explains why they don’t bash that company. Near as I can figure they’re just reselling Sprint cellphone service and it’s not like Sprint Nextel doesn’t give its fair share of contributions to the Republicans. So the suggestion that this would effectively redirect your money toward progressive causes is slightly misleading. Spring Nextel is still going to get some of your cash and they’ll use part of it to donate to Republicans. Still I suppose some of your money going towards progressive causes is better than none so long as the rates you’re paying aren’t too much higher than they would be if you just signed up for Sprint Nextel service directly.
I’ve been reading through some of the stuff about CREDO I’ve found via Google while typing this up and it sounds like some folks are quite happy with them while others are having various levels of problems. One thing is for sure, there are a lot of Liberals out there who appear to be very eager to support companies that share their progressive values. So much so that one has to wonder if we’re not ripe for abuse by companies who see an opportunity to milk a niche market. Being a natural cynic is why I’m leery of this offer.
So I figured I’d ask you guys if you know anything about this company. Have you used them before? Do you use them now? Are you satisfied with the service? Do they really live up to their promise of supporting progressive causes? Have you heard anything about them that would give you reason not to sign up? Or are you as clueless about them as I am?
Subscribing to this thread because I am very curious about Credo. I started seeing ads for them about 2 years ago, I think – but I still have a year’s service on my TracPhone so I’m not in a hurry. Even if they are just reselling Sprint access it could be a better redirection, provided they’re on the level.
Have never heard of them.
Having been in SW Michigan last weekend, I will say that the SPRINT network is not as “nationwide” as promised. I had only one signal bar as soon as the IL/ IN border, and nothing at all in Michigan. Ran the battery down doing the roaming.
I’ve been getting ads from them for several months, so I’m kind of curious, too. I’m glad you cleared up one issue (they’re reselling Sprint service).
I have to wonder, though — given that the Sprint money will essentially be going to (we assume) evil purposes, doesn’t it just make as much sense as choosing your preferred (evil) mobile carrier, and make direct (tax-deductable) contributions to the ACLU (etc.)?
Once upon a time Credo was known as Sprint Working Assets, a long distance carrier, then as Working Assets, and then Credo – all landline based. They donate 10% of your LD charges to various charities that were voted on by the customers. I was very pleased with their service – they went above and beyond helping me to straighten out a hideous problem with Verizon. As Working Assets, they were highly recommended by various progressive organizations.
I would assume that their mobile service is operated the same way. No idea how the quality is, tho.
By the sounds of things Credo will be a MVNO – Mobile Virtual Network Operator. Your contract is with Credo and you pay money to Credo, and when you turn your handset on it will say Credo, but Credo will buy wholesale capacity on Sprint Nextel’s network so some of your money will go to Sprint.
It will be a similar arrangement to Virgin Mobile who buy wholesale capacity from Sprint (in the US) and T-Mobile (in the UK).
Not sure if this will apply to you, but because Sprint is a CDMA-based network, if you travel outside the US (especially in Europe) your phone probably won’t work. AT&T use GSM and UMTS which are available in more countries.
I’ve had them for a few years now and I’m quite pleased. When my contract came up for renewal they actually called and offered to lower my rates. Who does that anymore?
There are some caveats though. I use a fairly basic phone and a simple plan (I don’t need or want a “smart phone”). I don’t text or use the mobile web. So my rates were low even before the deal they cut me on renewal.
Some people have complained that once you add on stuff like text plans, web plans and other stuff it can get pricey (some other carriers wrap all of that into one packages, which ultimately ends up lower than CREDO’s total). I’ve also been told their phones aren’t necessarily cutting edge.
So you might want to compare the phones they have and the plans they offer to see if they have what you want. If they do there’s no reason not to sign on, since you’ll know you’re supporting good causes with your money.
I would have no problem switching to them and have considered it but I have four lines and the early cancel fees would kill me, and their per month charges would be higher than I’m paying now.
But the cost difference was less than I expected and they have recently started offering some Android and Blackberry devices so FINALLY they are an option for people needing a smartphone.
If I didn’t have existing service, or if I were having issues with my current provider I’d use Credo in a heartbeat.
I say that with the caveat that for people with very basic needs or who use very few minutes/texts, prepaid options like straight talk and trackfone can be much cheaper.
I had signed progressive petitions circulated by CREDO during the 2008 election season so I’ve been getting emails from them ever since trying to sell me on a phone plan. Unfortunately, I did the same research you did, and Sprint’s service in our area is spotty at best, so we’re going to skip it for now. But I do have a couple of friends who are with CREDO and they never complain about their cell phone carrier, so they must be reasonably all right.
We’ve been using Credo since it was Working Assets. Initially, we just had it for long distance, but they started offering cell (and we got tired of crappy Verizon service) we switched to them.
No real problems. Coverage (in L.A. area) is better than we had with Verizon and we like the causes they donate to (they round up your bills to the nearest dollar and donate the “extra” to those causes). They have had (at least, until recently) a fairly sparse choice of phones, but that wasn’t a problem with us as we were just using basic cell phone services.
I forgot to mention–I’d been with Verizon before I switched to CREDO. With Verizon I had coverage issues even before moving to CA (both with phone and my broadband). Once I moved to CA my phone coverage became really sketchy and my broadband almost useless. So when CREDO sent me an offer I was already shopping around. Since the change I’ve had no problems at all with coverage (phone only, as I mentioned above) no matter where I am.
Very interesting. My mom was convinced and switched. What you say about renting bandwidth out from Sprint is perfectly correct, but not really surprising. Over the last coupla decades, SBC Sprint and ATT invested billions in infrastructure. Sprint owns most if not all the PCS bandwidth frequency, and hundreds of thousands of miles of fiber optics, particularly the big backbones that run between data centers, telcos, etc. in cities; so, its not really surprising. Theres not much one can do. Its sort of like airlines. Nobody can just go start an airline, the upfront cost for the airplanes is massive. By the same token, no one can just go out and start laying cable and make a new infrastructure-sized (physical )network, for many obvious reassons, not the least of which is that it really only workeed under monopolistic conditions, with gov help/subsidies. The infrastructure before the 80′s in america was almost exclusively ATT and Bell telephone. The transatlantic links are still ATT. In fact the link from california to asia is owned by ATT (the “secret room” wiretap situation? remember?), and simply *everybody* has to use it.
So, with those background restrictions and realities being what they are, I think this is about the best one could expect to be able to do if one was interested in where one’s telephone company’s profits went.
….it does, however, as you pointed out, sound all very suspiciously like a marketing ploy, and of course, in asense, it has to be, since it is, after, a business and not a charity to provide telecommunication services.
Is communication a “commons” however? Do we have the “right” to access comm. infrastructure?
Sorry about the numerous typos, I tried to edit it, but…well, you know that Ajax comment edit box still wont work on my computer.
Interesting, I just checked the homepage for the comment edit plugin we’re using and it appears it’s gone commercial. There have been several releases that may or may not fix the problem some of you are having. It’s only $5, but I’d hate to spend it and find that it still gives some of you problems.
So I’m continuing the search for an alternative. Still considering trying Disqus too.
I know nothing about the company itself and can’t speak to it, but I do know Sprint now has 4g service. So you might want to look at 4g coverage in Michigan and see if a switch would be worthwhile. But Credo doesn’t have any 4g phones yet, so that wouldn’t help you yet. And the smartphones they have are old. That Hero is already almost a year old, I know I bought one for my wife, yet they list it as “new”. Not to mention the Hero came out in other markets outside the US before Sprint got it. So technically the Hero is over a year old.
For their plans, they are more expensive then Sprints plan, but Sprint does have the cheapest plans by far. I was getting $175 for two phones to get what my wife and I plus two more people all get for $160 before taxes and surcharges. So I have two more phones, all have unlimited data and texting and I was at $175 before adding two more phones to their plan. Not to mention you have to add the “smartphone” option to every smartphone you have. Whereas with Sprint, we have a data plan so we don’t pay per smartphone. In other words, probably over $200 for me to go with Credo.
To me it makes more sense to just go with Sprint and take say 10% of the savings and put toward progressive causes yourself. The features and money you save just make sense.
CREDO has been around for so long, that the only reason you’re not aware of it is probably because you either weren’t part of their community back when they were known as Working Assets, or don’t get emails from AlterNet or MoveOn.org.
Back in the Working Assets days, these guys were Web activists with a capitalist bent – or so it seemed. But once they turned into CREDO, it’s been nothing but spam from these guys. Their service is probably just fine, but as far as activism goes they’re hard to distinguish from being just another Big Company that gives lots of money to the United Way, say.
A little off topic, but, I use cricket and have done so for 7 years or so, since whent hey were new..
Cheapest deal in town, totally unregulated minutes, (nighttime minutes, family plan, etc. all out the window)
Just a dial ton (well, so to speak) and a 45 dollar flat monthly bill, with free nationwide roaming and free long distance.
Completely flat-rate and unlimited. ESN switches are 15 bucks.
They should give me a commission dammit
I don’t know why anybody uses anything else!
I’ve been with Working Assets (Credo) for over 10 years. They used to just be my phone and long distance provider and then when I got a cell phone I went with them. I have been really happy with them from the beginning. The cell phones they have are a bit limited but my latest phone, htc hero, is great so it hasn’t been a problem for me.
Their bills are fascinating. Not only do they donate part of their profits to charities we select, they put current issues and the lawmaker to contact for each issue. You can have them send a letter to the lawmaker for you. They have a Facebook page if you want to see more of the issues they champion.
I love them and have been really happy. I haven’t pitched them much to friends and family but I’m thinking I should start.
I’ve been a CREDO customer for years. I love that they contribute to the causes I support, and I have been delighted with their service. I just wish I could use them for my landline, too. They have a feature on each bill highlighting legislation that, as a progressive, I should be aware, and will send letters on these to my legislators on my request. They give me an opportunity once a year to decide which organizations will receive my portion of the profits made by CREDO. And they always have great books to recommend on their bill.
I know it sounds like an ad, but they’ve treated us well, and we were able to escape AT&T, my arch nemesis. They are a business that stands for something, and there’s a lot to be said for that in this current climate.
Small note: If you go to the FEC website and do the math, Sprint doesn’t contribute much money to political causes. Much, much less than AT&T and Verizon, anyway. It makes sense: they have the cheapest bills around, so they don’t have as much money to throw at politicians. It’s the “lesser of evils” question.
I’ve been with CREDO for 6 years. Even back when it was Working Assets Wireless. Before that, I was a long distance customer. Now it is true that they don’t have the latest, flashiest phones. Yet, the fact that my money doesn’t eventually go to a right wing fanatic is excellent.
I’ve been fairly satisfied with their service. The customer service reps are really cordial and nice, even when I’ve called in a stressed out mood.
To be honest, their termination fee is paltry compared to the other big phone companies (half of Verizon’s termination fee!).
Service costs are comparable to big phone companies, and it’s free to talk to anyone on the network. I just had my phone stolen last night, and I was actually looking around for another phone company because of the lack of newer phones. However, the more I look, the better CREDO becomes, and I think I’ll probably stick with them.
Coverage is pretty good in metro areas (I live in Tucson, AZ); obviously the boonies have much less coverage. No problem with dropped calls on my end.
I definitely recommend CREDO to anyone. They have a more mainstream liberal political views, but I’m alot further left wing than they profess to be. So, if I have to keep a phone, it’ll stay a CREDO phone. Also, FYI the customer rep told me that CREDO was launching some new smartphones in November, although they’re not doing a good job of advertising that fact.
I’m from the Bay Area…where the company started. They’ve been around since at least 2004. They aren’t perfect, but they do a better job than the other “big dogs”. As long as it’s customers keep in tune with their business choices as thoroughly as they can, they can only improve! My collective purchases are always more of a vote than the ones I place at the ballot, so I support CREDO all the way!
So now heavy spamming is socially acceptable?
Looks like a big red flag.
I’ve used Credo for years. I have better coverage than my i-phone using friends and roaming is now free which has been very helpful since I go over mountain passes a lot. Phone calls to the white house and legislators are free. I have been impressed with the emails I’ve been getting and when I don’t feel like reading them, I just delete them. I have not re-upped because they do seem to stay a couple of years behind in technology – don’t even have the latest sprint phones. When my mom was in the hospital and all of a sudden I found myself a couple hundred hours over my plan, they let me up the amount of the plan and backdate it to the beginning of the month. So I expect I will be re-upping soon.
I’ve been using Credo for years (since back before they were Credo). Their rates are reasonable, and include nationwide roaming. The donate 1% of all their profits to progressive causes that customers vote on each year.
Their bills (if you still get paper bills) are printed on recycled paper and include lots of information on progressive causes. Two presidential elections ago they made all phone calls free on election day so people could call their friends/family to remind them to vote.
They are a bit slow in adopting smart phones, but have recently released a few android phones.
The best part, however, is their customer service. Which is awesome. Their customer service reps are smart, knowledgeable, and empowered to help you. About a year ago when my contract renewal came up I chose not to replace my phone and instead take a monthly credit on my bill (awesome option, BTW). Two months later my foster pup ate my phone. Instead of charging me an arm and a leg for a replacement, or making me renew my contract again, they found me a re-manufactured phone for a very reasonable cost and sent it right out.
When I got my droid phone last summer, they called about a week after to see how I liked it and if I had any questions on how to use it.
I HIGHLY recommend these folks!
I recommend avoiding Credo Mobile. Their customer service is among the worst I have ever used. If you have a technical problem with a phone you’re out of luck. They will go through some perfunctory process on the phone then tell you there’s nothing they can do about it except sell you a new phone. I signed up with them because their values seemed to match mine, but their values apparently do not extend to their customers. I live in Northern New England in an area with good cell reception from all of the major carriers.
Credo is a front group for the rabidly anti-union SPRINT. Caveat Emptor.
They seem extremely bogus to me. I cannot keep count of the letters they send to my home address assuming I’m also progressive (that’s true), always the letter is energy spend dissing the other guy with the exception of SPRINT, whom also lobby’s for groups they claim they are against. This seems like the biggest contradictory. The Spectrum they rent is Sprints. Which half of the time is roaming off Verizon. (note there is no guarantee that you’ll get any coverage like them, remember you paying for a rental of a rental). I would advise them not to bite the hands that feeds you, & except to get my money based on “empathy” letters that dumb down your attention span to three/four sentence rants about “evil” and end them with “Our 10% of your bill goes to PROGRESS”.
Not trying to be cynical but that sounds like a classic tax write off, Pick your own battles but give me some truth.
I switched to Credo a few months ago from Verizon because of Verizon’s anti-union activities. (Overall, Verizon’s service had been better than great.) As much as I like the idea of this company, I have to give a big thumbs-down because of their customer service. Although the people you get on the phone are pleasant enough, it takes FOREVER to get an answer from someone. The live people seem to have no clue; getting transferred to tech support is just code for being put on indefinite hold.
All things considered, I think I’m better off making my direct donations to the non-profits and causes that speak to me, and going with a service that is more reliable, has local stores, and provides better service.
I have credo, I would strong ly urge anyone not to get their service. I had a phone service nightmare when they sent me a six hundred dollar phone bill. Everythig that could go wrong with them did and they tried to make me pay the bill after charging me for four months of services I never used. A true night mare.