Virgin Mobile To Target Younger Users With Touch-Screen Phone

Virgin Mobile USA (NYSE: VM) CEO Dan Schulman said the MVNO plans to introduce touch-screen handsets into its line-up as part of a move into “smarter” phones, although didn’t give any details about the particular handsets or when they would be rolled out. He made the comments at the Dow Jones (NYSE: NWS) Wireless Innovations conference, reports NetworkWorld. Virgin traditionally goes after low-and-middle-income youth with cheap plans, and touch screen phones are generally considered high-end handsets, so this announcement reflects a couple of things…First, Schulman believes that smartphones will increase from about 20 percent of hansets sold in the U.S. to as much as half of them over the next three to five years, making them increasingly important. Also, the young demographic Virgin targets will prefer higher-end phones, and may be willing to pay extra for one if the plan it is attached to isn’t too onerous. And Virgin has made a conscious decision not to go after the lowest end of the market: