Since its IPO last year, the shares of Virgin Mobile USA Inc. (NYSE: VM) have imploded -- going from $15.69 to a low of $1.90. The stock has lifted somewhat lately though, and is now trading at $3.43.

Actually, the company has confirmed that it is talking with Helio -- majority owned by SK Telecom (NYSE: SKM) -- about a possible merger.

Both companies are known as mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs), which means that they provide cell services by using another carrier's infrastructure. Unfortunately, the MVNO model has been extremely difficult to pull off (in fact, there have been several high-profile blow-ups in the space, such as Amp'd).

So will a combination help things?

To get some perspective on things, I had a chance to interview Frank Dickson, who is the Chief Research Officer at MultiMedia Intelligence. According to him:

We've all experienced unsatisfactory customer service at some point. Slow service from a bartender, inattentiveness in a clothing store, interminably futile telephone conversations with utilities companies. Some of us can quickly brush aside these transgressions; others might take comfort in writing a strongly-worded letter (or seven).

One Korean man, Kim (the lone name that has been released in the press), took a slightly more dramatic approach, barreling a friend's borrowed Mercedes S500 into the South Korean lobby of SK Telecom's (NYSE: SKM) offices. Consumerist.com quoted Kim as saying: "The Samsung Anycall call phone that I bought from a [SK Telecom] distributor . . . didn't work at all."

Before taking these drastic measures, the disgruntled consumer said he placed 16 calls to his carrier's customer service department and visited the head office twice. An employee suggested Kim simply replace his phone with a newer model because the old version was no longer available.

No word yet on the repercussions facing Kim (on the part of either Samsung or his friend from whom he borrowed the Mercedes.)

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.