Tech rental firm Grover to launch MVNO with Gigs

Grover, a tech device rental firm, is becoming a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) and will use Berlin-based startup Gigs and its telecom-as-a-service platform to make its MVNO business possible.

Grover, which is also a Berlin-based company, launched its tech rental services in the U.S. in September 2021. It offers a portfolio of devices, including smartphones, tablets, laptops, wearables, gaming devices, cameras and televisions. Customers can rent these devices by the month. According to Andrew Draft, the U.S. general manager of Grover, the company’s flexible pricing allows customers to rent devices without being locked into a contract or having to rent them for a certain length of time. Because nearly one-third of Grover’s rentals are smartphones and laptops, Draft said that becoming an MVNO and offering their rental customers the ability to purchase a wireless service plan from their web site was a natural fit. “When customers come to the Grover web site we can present them with the opportunity to buy a flexible plan through Gigs,” Draft said. After selecting a device, Grover customers can add a Grover Connect plan at checkout and activate their eSIM. The Grover Connect rate plans can be purchased monthly or yearly and use AT&T’s underlying network.

The company has been piloting its MVNO service for the past few months and is now making the move official.

Grover decided to work with Gigs because both companies are based in Berlin and because Gigs makes it possible for Grover to offer wireless service without having to go to a wireless operator and negotiate with them. Plus, Grover wants to expand into more markets – its service is currently available in the U.S., Germany, Austria, Spain and the Netherlands – and Gigs can make that possible without requiring Grover to have to negotiate contracts with multiple operators around the world.

Gigs does make its money in the same way that mobile virtual network enablers (MVNEs) make money, by negotiating wholesale rates at scale with operators and then repackaging the service and reselling it.

Draft said that Grover is particularly popular with certain demographic groups like college students, members of the military and first responders. The company has partnered with schools and other entities to help increase awareness of its service.