Spring Mobile owns and operates 1,289 AT&T wireless stores.

Spring Mobile is the largest operator of AT&T-branded locations, and while you may not know that name, you have probably heard of its parent company: GameStop. The telecom giant’s sweet-but-bemused store manager character “Lily” may have dominated the company’s TV advertising over the past three years, but what you may not know is that a growing number of AT&T-branded stores are actually owned and operated by third-party companies. GRAPEVINE, Texas, Jan. 16, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) today announced that it has completed the previously disclosed sale of its Spring Mobile …

GameStop, along with its board of directors and outside financial advisors will continue to conduct an ongoing review of “strategic and financial” alternatives to boost shareholder value.

GameStop shares were up 11.5 pct at $13.69 in afternoon trade. © 2020 TWICE is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. The purchase also provides the Utah-based business with its first Connecticut and New York outposts and adds 19 stores to its New Jersey roster.

The union is pushing for AT&T to commit to a specific ratio of corporate-owned to authorized retailers — a concession that would place a check on the growth of the third-party operations. And despite the harsh economic climate for many bricks-and-mortar retailers, AT&T’s third-party dealer operation is growing. Salt Lake City, Utah – GameStop’s Spring Mobile wireless subsidiary has acquired 53 AT&T-branded stores from independent New York metro area chain Product Center. As of April 2014, the Technology Brands segment included 218 retail outlets. In a motivational a video posted to Spring Mobile’s website Spring employees are encouraged to “Protect the Family,” “Rule the Galaxy,” and “Blow By AT&T Retail.”, In one Spring Mobile internal video, an employee exhorts his colleagues to “Blow By AT&T Retail.”. Just as we saw Dish leverage its installation and repair infrastructure to provide recall repairs to Samsung customers, GameStop is hoping its retail expertise can be valuable both to its bottom-line and to partners like AT&T. GameStop will use proceeds from the recent $700 million sale of its Spring Mobile business to reduce outstanding debt, repurchase shares, or reinvest in the core gaming and collectibles business. Shoot us an email at [email protected]. Editor's Note: This article originally appeared on Consumerist. GameStop will use proceeds from the recent $700 million sale of its Spring Mobile business to reduce outstanding debt, repurchase shares, or reinvest in … “It appears that the companies running these stores are not looking to burnish the brand – after all, they depend on AT&T to provide a quality network and compelling marketing – rather they seem to be seeking to maximize sales with minimum expenses.” Published: October 7, 2014. Company profile page for Spring Communications Holding Inc including stock price, company news, press releases, executives, board members, and contact information The largest third-party operator of AT&T-branded (but not owned) stores now has over 1,400 locations and opened or acquired 33 new stores last quarter, according to SEC filings. The Technology Brands segment was created during the fourth quarter of 2013 and houses the companies Simply Mac, Spring Mobile, and Cricket Wireless. Pre-order, buy and sell video games and electronics at Spring Cypress - GameStop.

“We are pleased to successfully complete this transaction and begin 2019 with an increased focus on the video game industry and the rapidly-growing collectibles space. The use of authorized dealers by telecom companies is in no way new — or exclusive to AT&T — but in this case one of the companies behind the curtain has a familiar face. It’s worth noting that the CWA report does not give any indication of the types or frequency of complaints that AT&T customer service receives from customers who shopped at corporate-owned stores, so it’s not possible to say whether these survey results are worse, better, or the same than what customers experience at a company-run AT&T retail location. “Less than five of our more than 13,000 retail employees left our business last year as the result of our retail stores closing.” Update my browser now, Alan Wolf ⋅ When you walk into a store with an “AT&T” sign overhead, you might assume that the employees you’re speaking with work for AT&T. Video game retailer GameStop is expanding and diversifying by buying hundreds more AT&T wireless dealer stores. Read Next: Tribeca Film Festival Elevates Games for 2021, Opens Submissions for First Games Award, ‘Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal’ Tactics Game Is Coming to Nintendo Switch, Xbox Had Keanu Reeves, But Ubisoft Had Jon Bernthal and His Actual Dog, The Original ‘Auto Chess’ Is Coming to Epic Games Store, ‘The Boys’ Boss Eric Kripke on the Season 2 Finale and What to Expect from Jensen Ackles in Season 3, ‘Supernatural’s’ Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki on Their Final Scene Together, Moving onto ‘The Boys’ and ‘Walker…, Jensen Ackles and Danneel Ackles Ink Overall Deal at Warner Bros. Television Group, Sarah Silverman, Tiffany Haddish, Chris Rock, Other Celebs Get Naked in New Mail-in Voting PSA, ‘West Wing’ Reunion Trailer Brings Back President Bartlet’s Team, ‘The Stand’ Trailer Gives Alexander Skarsgård the Spotlight as Randall Flagg, Buffalo Bill's 'Silence of the Lambs' House of Horrors Hits the Market Again, ‘The Stand’ Boss on New Relevance, Changes to Stephen King’s Story, ‘Green Lantern’ Series Gets Greenlight at HBO Max, Seth Grahame-Smith and Marc Guggenheim to Write, ‘Tiger King’ Star Doc Antle Indicted on Wildlife Trafficking Charges, Amber Ruffin on Reinventing Late Night and Dreaming Bigger, Netflix's Ted Sarandos on Expanding Animation, Global Vision and His Leadership Style, Spike Lee on Chadwick Boseman, Donald Trump and How Black and Brown People Rescued New York, Marvel and DC Movies Will Flood Theaters in 2021 and 2022 — If They Can All Be Made in Time, Buffalo Bill’s ‘Silence of the Lambs’ House of Horrors Hits the Market Again, Listen: 10 Batshit Things Trump Told Rush Limbaugh Today, Deal Sheet: From Fall Layers to Home Wares, the Most Luxurious Deals Online This Week, Red Sox Owner Henry In Talks With RedBall to Take Fenway Sports Public, Review: Sony’s MHC-V13 is the Perfect Party Speaker.

Consumerist has also reached out to GameStop, parent company of Spring Mobile, for comment on the CWA’s claims but has not received a response. Variety and the Flying V logos are trademarks of Variety Media, LLC. The result is a network of stores that look and sound like AT&T but consider themselves to be in direct competition with corporate-owned AT&T stores. GameStop acquired Spring Mobile last November as part of its diversification into wireless, which anticipates waning demand for packaged media. Spring Mobile was purchased by Prime Communications. Dish leverage its installation and repair infrastructure. Salt Lake City, Utah – GameStop’s Spring Mobile wireless subsidiary has acquired 53 AT&T-branded stores from independent New York metro area chain Product Center. Despite being the largest brick-and-mortar games retailer in the U.S., the company has struggled with its relevance in an era of digital game sales and popular online retailers like Amazon which offers more competitive pricing and direct shipment to consumers. It’s not surprising then that the Communication Workers of America, the union that represents workers in AT&T’s corporate-owned retail locations, is distressed by the trend. In a statement to Consumerist, AT&T disputes CWA’s claims that customer satisfaction or quality standards are any lower at authorized retailers. GameStop is selling its Spring Mobile business for $700 million, aiming to sharpen its focus on its core business amid a company-wide review. Update your browser to view this website correctly. The company says it holds authorized dealers to the “same high standards as our company-owned outlets,” and that “authorized retailers score as well or better on measures of customer satisfaction.” The purchase is the third and largest acquisition for Spring Mobile this year, bringing its store count up to almost 300 AT&T-branded locations across 26 states. This review will also determine exactly how proceeds from the sale will be used. The report from CWA cites a survey of 1,300 employees of AT&T-owned call centers and retail stores as evidence that these authorized stores are providing a lesser standard of service. The purchase also provides the […] Spring Mobile president Jason Ellis described the company as AT&T’s fastest-growing authorized retail partner, having more than doubled in size over the past 12 months. For more stories like this, and to keep up to date with all our market leading news, features and analysis, sign up to our newsletter here. All email addresses you provide will be used just for sending this story. An AT&T retail store employee quoted in a CWA statement provided to Consumerist described “a never-ending stream of AT&T customers coming into my store with complaints from dealers.” These are areas where we are well positioned to leverage the GameStop brand and capitalize on our competitive position,” said Dan DeMatteo, executive chairman of GameStop’s board of directors. According to the survey — which appears to be a non-scientific poll that did not involve any employees from these third-party stores — 76% of the AT&T employees had heard from “customers [who] came to them with problems caused by authorized dealers multiple times per week.” 83% claim that third-party stores are referring their customers to corporate-owned stores when a service issue arises, and 40% said that these non-corporate retailers are offering services that AT&T doesn’t actually provide. “AT&T’s third party dealer stores look like full-fledged AT&T outlets, but they are often skeleton operations with smaller staffs and less ability to meet customer needs,” reads a newly released report [PDF] from the union. We respect your privacy. “At a time when people are increasingly choosing to do business online and lots of retailers are closing stores, we continue to operate thousands of company-owned retail stores across the country,” reads a statement from AT&T in response to the CWA report. The No. The company is committed to providing wireless devices, plans, and accessories, operating more than 1400 AT&T stores across 28 states. GameStop is divided into two operating segments: Video Game Brands and Technology Brands.

At these locations, the sales people inside have no direct employment connection to AT&T. In fact, in GameStop’s 2017 Annual SEC filing [PDF], the company disclosed that its “Technology Brands” business segment, which includes Spring Mobile and an Apple-authorized retailer called Simply Mac, competes with “a wide variety of other wireless carriers and retailers and consumer electronics retailers, including AT&T.” Spring employees are aware of this dynamic — and GameStop’s competitive, sales-focused corporate culture encourages them to embrace it. Spring Mobile was founded in 2001 and is based in Salt Lake City, Utah. © Copyright 2020 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media, LLC. maintains that third-party owned locations provide a degraded customer service experience. The purchase is the third and largest acquisition for Spring Mobile this year, bringing its store count up to almost 300 AT&T-branded locations across 26 states. Management made the point that back in early 2019, Hestia and Permit advocated spending all of the $700 million received from the sale of GameStop's Spring Mobile on … The company first entered into a definitive agreement to sell off the Spring Mobile business in November 2018. We will never publish your name or identify you publicly.