The People’s Operator USA no longer exists. This charity-focused MVNO closed its US service in late 2018 and moved its customers to Ting Mobile.
The People’s Operator USA is gone
TPO Mobile donated 10% of each bill to a charity the customer chose. The US exit was flagged in May 2018, and a BestMVNO article dated November 28, 2018 confirmed the closure. We could not find an exact closing day.
If you were a TPO customer
Ting Mobile took the US customers. Customers who switched kept their numbers and balances, and Ting donated $10 per migrated subscriber to Planet Water Foundation.
How The People’s Operator USA ended
- November 2012: The UK business, The People’s Operator, launched.
- 2015: TPO launched in the US on Sprint, with T-Mobile added later.
- May 2018: The US exit was flagged in a notice.
- November 2018: TPO announced the US closure and migration to Ting.
The history of The People’s Operator USA
TPO sold SIM-only plans, including an Infinity plan at $54.99 on Sprint. Jimmy Wales was head of digital. The company’s UK parent entered administration in early 2019, after the US service had already closed.
How to find who holds an old number now
- Check an old bill or payment record. It names the company that billed you last.
- Run the number through a carrier lookup tool. It shows the carrier that holds the number today.
- Call that carrier and ask for the account number and transfer PIN.
- Start the port from the new carrier. Never cancel the old line first.
Your right to keep a number
Number portability is federal law, not a carrier policy. The rule is the FCC’s: Portability: Keeping Your Phone Number When Changing Service Providers.
How we verified The People’s Operator USA
Best Cellular tracks active carriers and defunct ones. We keep both, because people still search for brands that no longer exist. Every fact on this The People’s Operator USA page comes from at least two independent sources, listed below, and we leave a detail out when no source states it. Where sources disagree, this page says so. If you can document a correction, tell us and we will check it against the sources.
Tracked and active are different counts on this site. The People’s Operator USA counts in our tracked total, not in our active total, so it does not appear in tools built for live carriers.
Questions about The People’s Operator USA
Is The People’s Operator USA still in business?
No. It closed its US service in late 2018. We could not find an exact closing day.
Where did TPO customers go?
To Ting Mobile.
What network did TPO use?
Sprint first, with T-Mobile added later.
Did TPO customers keep their numbers?
Customers who switched to Ting kept their numbers and balances.
Does BestCellular.com list The People’s Operator USA as an active carrier?
No. We track The People’s Operator USA as a defunct carrier. It counts toward our tracked total but not our active total.
Sources and verification
Facts checked October 11, 2026 against at least two independent sources:
- BestMVNO: TPO Mobile announces official USA closure: the closure and Ting migration.
- NWIDA: TPO looks to end US operations: the May 2018 notice.
- TechRadar: Charitable MVNO The People’s Operator shuts down: the shutdown.
- Fierce: UK MVNO The People’s Operator plans US launch: the US launch.
Best Cellular. “The People’s Operator USA: What Happened,” BestCellular.com. https://bestcellular.com/the-peoples-operator-usa/
Free to reuse with credit. Licence, sources and the full dataset. All defunct carriers are listed on carriers that shut down.