Report: Dish Could Sell Wireless Plans Through Amazon

Dish Network is reportedly in discussions to offer wireless plans via Amazon.

The arrangement could give Dish’s fledgling mobile phone network a crucial lifeline for its 5G rollout, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Thursday (May 25), citing unnamed sources.

Details of phone plans offered via Amazon’s website could be announced next month, according to the report.

PYMNTS has contacted Amazon and Dish for comment. Amazon declined to comment, and Dish has not yet responded. The two companies discussed a partnership in 2017.

Dish executives have expressed a need to make sure Apple’s mobile devices can operate on its new 5G network to tap into the iPhone’s significant share of the market, according to the WSJ report. In addition, government regulators have given Dish until June 14 to meet certain network coverage milestones or risk financial penalties.

Earlier this year, PYMNTS looked at the impact of 5G’s expansion on B2B payments. Many observers have called the integration of 5G networks the first generation of mobile technology to have a larger impact on businesses than on consumers.

5G offers a vast improvement in functionality over the current 4G connectivity standard it is set to succeed, offering broadband speeds that are up to 100 times faster while providing 1,000 times more capacity.

It is projected to support next-generation mobile networks that offer much higher capacity and reliability, lower latency, reduced energy use, and enhanced connectivity.

Companies will be able to build on the increasingly digital nature of B2B payments and allow for consistent responses in real or near real time between B2B players, helping foster sustainable, collaborative relationships.

“The technology’s real-time connectivity solutions will also help offer relief for accounting teams burdened with the manual processes of invoice creation, check writing and mailing invoices and payments by providing key modernizations to B2B processes,” PYMNTS wrote.

The PYMNTS report “Tapping the Payments Opportunity in SMB Retail” found that 65% of mid-sized businesses spend 14 hours a week on administrative tasks for payment collection.

In addition, 5G has the potential to revolutionize cross-border and domestic transactions by ushering in new solutions that meet the needs of businesses seeking less complex international B2B payments, cash management and invoice reconciliations.