The Trump Organization's push into the smartphone business leans on a tiny Florida-based wireless company headquartered in a Trump Tower condo.
What Happened: To power Trump Mobile's "Made in America" smartphone and wireless plan, the Trump Organization partnered with Liberty Mobile Wireless, a little-known mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) founded in 2018, reported the Financial Times.
A mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) is a business that leases network capacity from major carriers like AT&T (NYSE:T), Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), and T-Mobile U.S. Inc. (NASDAQ:TMUS), and then resells it under its own brand to customers.
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The company is registered at a unit inside the luxury Trump Tower in Miami and lists fewer than 50 employees on LinkedIn.
Despite billing itself as the backbone of Trump Mobile's national rollout, Liberty Mobile Wireless's website still features placeholder text — five identical entries answering the question, "What is Lorem Ipsum?"
Company filings link Liberty Mobile to entrepreneur Matt Lopatin, who has previously launched and dissolved several small ventures.
Why It's Important: Trump Mobile launched earlier this month with promises of a U.S.-made smartphone called the "T1," retailing for $499.
The order page briefly crashed after its launch on Monday due to what one employee on Wednesday described as a "rush of inquiries," the report noted.
Launching in August alongside a new wireless service called Trump Mobile, the device will reportedly be manufactured in Alabama, California and Florida. However, industry experts are doubtful about large-scale U.S. smartphone production.
Previously, Roger Entner of Recon Analytics noted that no major smartphones have been made in the U.S. since the 2G/3G era due to a lack of infrastructure, skilled labor and supply chains.
Analyst Dan Ives also suggested the project might work on a small scale but would face serious challenges if production exceeds 20,000–40,000 units.
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