It’s time for a new Uncarrier: Could Verizon take up the mantle?

T-Mobile’s “uncarrier” era is over in all but name. The company that once tore up the rulebook and dragged the wireless industry into the modern age now looks a lot like the competitors it used to mock. After years of disruption, T-Mobile has settled comfortably into big-carrier territory. This has included raising prices, adding dubious fees, axing features, and chasing profit in the same ways as AT&T and Verizon.

That leaves a strange gap in the market. The uncarrier spirit used to represent simplicity, rebellion, and a little chaos. It meant someone was finally focusing on customer pain points, even if it was largely just a marketing strategy. In 2025, the uncarrier title doesn’t really belong to anyone anymore. This matters because it means few to no wireless brands are willing to challenge the status quo anymore.

The question isn’t whether T-Mobile can bring it back; it’s whether any brand still has the nerve, or even means, to take up the mantle.

It’s not likely to be T-Mobile. The carrier is too comfortable. Record profits and subscriber growth have only reinforced its “digital-first” strategy and its expected to continue even stronger under its new CEO. This strategy basically means cramming every customer interaction into the T Life app, even what used to happen in stores.

AT&T, for its part, seems content to stay quiet and technical. Its focus is on its cellular and fiber networks, not the customer, and there’s little sign it’s about to change course.

That leaves Verizon. It might sound laughable given its reputation as the pricey, premium “best network” option for people willing to pay whatever it takes. But despite how unlikely it sounds, Verizon might actually be the one carrier positioned to shake things up if it can figure out how.

Let’s take a closer look at where Verizon stands and whether it has what it takes to become a true disruptor. After that, we’ll explore a wild card: the place where the uncarrier spirit might already be alive and well.

Verizon’s new CEO inherits a mess. The carrier lost nearly 290,000 postpaid customers in the first quarter of 2025, carries a heavy debt load, and is dealing with some of the worst customer satisfaction ratings in its history. T-Mobile’s leadership change looks calm by comparison. Its future is predictable, if not exciting, which means the new blood there is unlikely to shake much up. Verizon, on the other hand, actually needs to.

The problems go deeper than pricing complaints. Verizon’s reputation as the gold standard for network performance has faded in the 5G era. AT&T and T-Mobile have caught up in reach, reliability, and speed, and in some areas have pulled ahead. The old “best network” slogan doesn’t mean what it used to.

If Verizon wants to turn things around, it has a few ways it could go. An uncarrier-style shakeup is one possible route, though probably not the most likely. The bigger question is whether the new CEO, Dan Schulman, can push the company in a direction that actually connects with customers the way John Legere once did for T-Mobile.

The previous CEO promised better customer service but mostly delivered frustration. The company leaned too hard on automation, forcing subscribers through clunky AI chatbots that made things worse instead of better. Schulman could bring a different mindset. His background with Virgin Mobile USA and PayPal suggests he understands how to build customer loyalty through culture. The problem is that he isn’t really an outsider. He has served on Verizon’s board since 2018, which means he likely had a hand in the same strategies that alienated customers in the first place.

That history makes a full reinvention unlikely. When T-Mobile went “uncarrier,” it had little to lose and everything to gain. It was barely ahead of regional players like US Cellular and was desperate for a turnaround. Verizon isn’t in that position. Despite its struggles, it still generates massive revenue, and there’s too much at stake to risk a pricing overhaul or a radical pivot.

The most realistic scenario is a smaller-scale shakeup. Verizon might try to rival T-Mobile’s consumer perks rather than upend the industry. Expect more effort around programs like Verizon Access, richer streaming bundles, and a strategy that quietly counters whatever frustrations T-Mobile creates. For instance, T-Mobile has de-emphasized its retail presence and leaned away from live customer service. Verizon could flip that on its head, closing only its weakest stores while improving in-person service everywhere else.

Of course, Verizon could go the other direction and focus on cost-cutting, automation, and continue to push hard with AI instead of network innovation and customer outreach. That said, to me this feels more likely in the short term. But if customer losses accelerate and the financial pressure keeps mounting, bigger changes might finally follow.

If that happens, maybe Big Red could turn into something closer to a “Little Red,” a company less known for arrogance and more for adaptation. It’s a long shot, but stranger turnarounds have happened in the wireless world.

The truth is, none of the big three is likely to shake up the wireless game anytime soon unless something forces them to. The good news is that the next-generation uncarrier already exists. It just doesn’t belong to one company anymore. The spirit of disruption now lives in the prepaid market.

Over the last few years, prepaid carriers have quietly become the most innovative part of the industry. They’ve built real alternatives to postpaid service with fewer sacrifices and, in some cases, better perks. Visible offers truly unlimited data at a fraction of the cost for those comfortable with online-only support. US Mobile lets customers hop between all three major networks. Google Fi’s international roaming still embarrasses even the priciest postpaid plans.

Even once-premium benefits are creeping into prepaid. Free phone promos, financing, and insurance are now much more common than before, especially from brands like Metro by T-Mobile or Google Fi. Some of these carriers used to feel like budget stopgaps. Now, they’re the ones adding true value, while the big networks chase margins and automation.

Advertising tells the story, too. Ten years ago, prepaid brands barely existed in mainstream media. Now, ads for Tello, Cricket, Total, Visible, and Metro are everywhere. I’ve seen ads on streaming platforms, radio, and even broadcast TV. They’re fighting for attention the way T-Mobile once did, and customers are starting to notice.

This shift isn’t new globally. Prepaid has long dominated outside the United States. Back in 2006, GSMA Intelligence estimated that prepaid made up about 63 percent of global connections. While I couldn’t dig up exact figures or stats today, most estimates suggest it’s closer to three-quarters. In much of Europe and Asia, prepaid is the default, with postpaid mostly serving businesses or family plans. The US, Canada, and a few other countries are really the outliers, clinging to subsidies and strategies that other markets have already outgrown.

You’d think the big carriers would want to stop this shift, but they’ve already found a way to profit from it. They own the competition. Verizon controls brands like Visible and plenty of others, including Straight Talk and Tracfone. T-Mobile has Metro, Mint Mobile, and a few others. AT&T runs Cricket Wireless.

By quietly absorbing the prepaid market, they’ve created a clever two-tier system: high-margin customers on postpaid, cost-sensitive ones on prepaid, and both feeding the same corporate parent.

It’s not that different from how fast-food chains use their apps. The people who stick with the drive-thru pay more and subsidize the discounts handed to app users. Wireless carriers are doing the same thing. The loyal, less-informed, or less-mobile postpaid customer props up the system, letting prepaid users pay less and still get solid service.

So if you’re waiting for one of the big carriers to rediscover its rebellious streak, you’ll be waiting a long time. The truth is, the uncarrier revolution didn’t die; it just split up and went prepaid. If you’ve yet to given prepaid a try, be sure to take a look at our guide to some of the best prepaid plans.