T-Mobile Going LTE In 2013

Today T-Mobile USA executives officially announced that Americas Largest 4G wireless carrier will be making the switch to LTE (Long Term Evolution) technology in 2013. T-Mobile CEO Phillip Humm and CTO Neville Ray outlined a strategy to cure subscriber churn and incorporate new wireless technology to turn the heat up on competitors Verizon, AT&T and Sprint. The news was a welcomed positive among less than stellar fourth quarter 2011 operating results. T-Mobile stated that it suffered the loss of around 802,000 contract customers in the final quarter of 2011 and gained nearly 220,000 prepaid customers. This loss was due mostly to uncertainty over the proposed AT&T merger and lack of an iPhone built for T-Mobile which all other major carriers currently have.

T-Mobile made it clear that they are here to stay and have a clear plan to turn things around quickly. The carrier seems poised for a strong future as they re-launch their brand and make network upgrades that will significantly enhance coverage and performance for their subscribers. This plan is outlined in the press statement in full detail below. What do you think about T-Mobile's game plan and move to LTE technology? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.



T-Mobile USA Announces Reinvigorated Challenger Strategy

Begins Major Network Transformation in 2012 with LTE Launch Planned for 2013

BELLEVUE, Wash. — Feb. 23, 2012 — Today, T-Mobile USA, Inc. CEO and President Philipp Humm outlined the company’s reinvigorated challenger strategy focused on making amazing 4G services affordable. T-Mobile will invest in strategic initiatives to get the business back to growth. The most significant investment is a $4 billion network modernization and 4G evolution effort, which will improve existing voice and data coverage and pave the way for long term evolution (LTE) service in 2013.1

“We want to be known for delivering the best value in wireless because of the advanced technology we deliver at an affordable price,” said Philipp Humm CEO and President of T-Mobile USA. “Over the next two years, we’re prioritizing and investing in initiatives designed to get T-Mobile back to growth in the years ahead — beginning with the transformation of our network.”

Additional investment areas core to the company’s challenger strategy include aggressively pursuing the B2B segment, expanding the sales force by 1,000; ramping up advertising spending; and attracting new mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) partners with an efficient platform for getting to market. T-Mobile will also continue to remodel its retail stores and expand distribution.

T-Mobile Chief Technology Officer Neville Ray detailed the company’s network strategy, which includes installing new equipment at 37,000 cell sites and refarming spectrum to launch LTE in 2013.1 The key catalyst of refarming is the additional spectrum T-Mobile will receive as a result of the termination of the AT&T transaction. Also, other enablers are faster adoption of 3G and 4G services and improved device performance.

T-Mobile will invest a total of $4 billion over time into network modernization and LTE deployment. Over the next two years, this represents approximately $1.4 billion in incremental network investment. T-Mobile expects to reach broad deployment of LTE, with service in the vast majority of the top 50 markets and 20 MHz service in 75 percent of the top 25 markets.

“Today, we operate America’s Largest 4G Network delivering a fast and reliable 4G data experience with HSPA+,” said Neville Ray, chief technology officer, T-Mobile USA. “Launching LTE next year lets us take advantage of technology infrastructure advancements and benefit from a more mature LTE device ecosystem while continuing to meet the growing demand for data with a powerful 4G experience.”

T-Mobile expects to be the first carrier in North America to modernize its 4G network infrastructure with new antenna integrated radios on many of its cell towers, which will deliver higher performance and strengthen coverage.

More than 90 percent of T-Mobile device sales in the fourth quarter were 3G and 4G smartphones. As data usage and smartphone adoption accelerate, fewer customers are utilizing 2G services. This enables T-Mobile to refarm existing spectrum holdings, reducing the amount of 1900 MHz PCS spectrum being used for GSM; to deploy HSPA+ 4G services in the PCS band; and to make room in the AWS band for LTE. In addition to creating capacity for LTE in AWS spectrum, deploying HSPA+ in the PCS band will harmonize T-Mobile’s spectrum bands with the US market and international carriers. As the company refarms spectrum, T-Mobile will continue to support its 2G customers.

T-Mobile’s 4G HSPA+ network, which currently covers well over 200 million people, will continue to deliver a competitive 4G experience. T-Mobile will continue to expand its HSPA+ 4G footprint and its innovative 4G product and service offerings. For example, the recently announced Samsung Galaxy S®Blaze™ 4G, launching in March, is the newest smartphone in T-Mobile’s portfolio to support the faster speeds offered by the HSPA+ 42 network.

No T-Mobile Deal For AT&T

Photo

As of today the bid for an acquisition of T-Mobile by AT&T is over. AT&T and T-Mobile have both made announcements detailing the mutual decision.This has been an uphill battle for AT&T since they made their intentions known on March of this year. They face much opposition by the FCC, and Department of Justice among others and today it is officially over. (AT&T statement below)

With the 39 billion aquisition officially off the table, AT&T will have to pay out the break-up fee of $3 billion in cash and $1 billion in spectrum. The two parties did make a roaming agreement that will benefit both parties. Read the AT&T statement below and tell us what you think. Is this how you thought it would end and how will this effect the US wireless market going forward? Leave your thoughts and comment below.


AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) said today that after a thorough review of options it has agreed with Deutsche Telekom AG to end its bid to acquire T-Mobile USA, which began in March of this year.

The actions by the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Justice to block this transaction do not change the realities of the U.S. wireless industry. It is one of the most fiercely competitive industries in the world, with a mounting need for more spectrum that has not diminished and must be addressed immediately. The AT&T and T-Mobile USA combination would have offered an interim solution to this spectrum shortage. In the absence of such steps, customers will be harmed and needed investment will be stifled.

“AT&T will continue to be aggressive in leading the mobile Internet revolution,” said Randall Stephenson, AT&T chairman and CEO. “Over the past four years we have invested more in our networks than any other U.S. company. As a result, today we deliver best-in-class mobile broadband speeds – connecting smartphones, tablets and emerging devices at a record pace – and we are well under way with our nationwide 4G LTE deployment.

“To meet the needs of our customers, we will continue to invest,” Stephenson said. “However, adding capacity to meet these needs will require policymakers to do two things. First, in the near term, they should allow the free markets to work so that additional spectrum is available to meet the immediate needs of the U.S. wireless industry, including expeditiously approving our acquisition of unused Qualcomm spectrum currently pending before the FCC. Second, policymakers should enact legislation to meet our nation’s longer-term spectrum needs.

“The mobile Internet is a dynamic industry that can be a critical driver in restoring American economic growth and job creation, but only if companies are allowed to react quickly to customer needs and market forces,” Stephenson said.

To reflect the break-up considerations due Deutsche Telekom, AT&T will recognize a pretax accounting charge of $4 billion in the 4th quarter of 2011. Additionally, AT&T will enter a mutually beneficial roaming agreement with Deutsche Telekom.

Via AT&T PR

T-Mobile Stepping Up Small Business Wireless Effort

Photo Source

T-Mobile is on a roll with new feature offerings and an improved wireless portfolio for 2011. They reported a slight financial gain of 1% over 2nd quarter results and added 126,000 to their overall subscriber base in the 3rd Quarter earnings report for 2011. They have revealed a renewed game plan focusing marketing efforts more on their Value Plans and Monthly 4G (No Contract Plans).  First the launch of the highly competitive T-Mobile Value Plans featuring T-Mobile's Best Plan Ever (2 Lines/ $49.99 each Unlimited Data, Talk and Text), then on November 16th at a Google Android event in Los Angeles, they introduced exclusive music offering (T-Mobile Free Tracks) showcasing the ability for (T-Mobile customers exclusively) to pay for Google Music downloads on their monthly wireless bill.

Now the magenta carrier has revealed a competitive offer on T-Mobile Small Business. For a limited time customers can receive a $15 monthly discount every month for a year on a 2 year T-Mobile Small Business agreement ($49.99/month). T-Mobile Small Business customers on Blackberry plans can also receive free Premium Blackberry apps worth over $100 between now and December 31, 2011. This move allows them to the opportunity to gain some ground on what competitors like Sprint, AT&T and Verizon are doing in their small business sectors as the year finishes out. We are keeping an eye on this and other moves that T-Mobile is making to stay competitive in these challenging times in wireless business. Share your thoughts in the comments area below. Let us know if you think T-Mobile is on the right road or headed towards a dead end.

Via T-Mobile Small Business

Google Music Is Official !

Photo Source

Google Music was made official today, November 16th, 2011 at a launch event in Los Angeles. This is big news for music artists and fans alike because of the new Google Music Store. The Google Music Store is an intuitive platform for both hit making top 40 superstars and aspiring newcomers alike. Google's database of over 13 million songs starting at 99 cent will be available immediately, with more music soon to follow.

Google Music aims to be a much needed bridge for unknowns to be discovered and get their music out to the world. Jaime Rosenberg ( Google Director of Digital Content for Android ) outlined how the new platform allows the artist to control their own music and set pricing for it to be downloaded. This along with loads of exclusive content, music sharing and recommendations between Google+ Circles, set it apart from other music platforms like iTunes.

During the announcement, they discussed  Androids recent and dramatic growth. The Android platform occupies 52.5% of the current smartphone market. In light of that, Google Music users will enjoy integration with Google+ and their music content will be available via Google cloud service on their Android phones, tablets and computers. Google Music customers will enjoy the convenience of being able to access and play up to 20,000 music tracks across any browser including iOS devices free.

T-Mobile was also on hand for todays announcement and they boldly displayed their commitment to Android as they will be the first wireless carrier to fully support Google Music. T-Mobile wireless subscribers will have access to free and exclusive music content, additionally T-Mobile is the only carrier to allow Google Music subscribers to pay for their music downloads on their monthly wireless bill. This seems logical as T-Mobile was the first wireless company to partner with Google as they launched the very first Android phone the HTC built (Google G1) in 2008 on T-Mobile exclusively. This partnership has continued and T-Mobile currently offers the largest line-up of  Android phones running on Americas Largest 4G network which currently reaches over 200 million people nationwide in 208 major markets .

With their entry into digital music sales, they will be mixing it up with Apple and Amazon to claim their portion of the 6.8 Billion dollars in digital music sales projected for 2012 by Gartner, a leading tech research firm. Google has done their homework and as they shared at the launch event, they intend to apply what they learned during Google Music BETA to make this service a compelling digital music offering that can compete among giants.

Via Google Music, T-Mobile, Gartner Research