As AT&T and Verizon took pains to tout their 4G spectrum holdings, T-Mobile’s U.S. CEO said it is looking into partnerships with cable and other network providers to boost its own spectrum capacity. T-Mobile, which lags Verizon, AT&T and Sprint for market share in the U.S., has been on the hunt for deals or merger partners for some time — including potential hook-ups with smaller U.S. players like Leap or MetroPCS. But buying or partnering for additional spectrum to enhance its 4G plans would boost its prospects as well.
Reuters reported on the strategy, discussed by T-Mobile USA CEO Robert Dotson in an investor conference Thursday:
“We continue to look at JV opportunities for additional spectrum… there are a number of different options we look at, (we) have been talking with cable companies, with Clearwire,” Dotson said, [adding that] the company did not expect to rely on a national broadband plan the federal government is currently working on. The plan aims to expand access, increase Internet speeds and shift airwaves to mobile services.
Connected Planet’s take, Kevin Fitchard:
Thank you, Robert Dotson. The rampant speculation around T-Mobile USA’s future has resulted in some ridiculous theories about potential mergers or ventures with companies like Sprint, MetroPCS and Leap. (We explain why they’re ridiculous here). Without actually committing T-Mobile to a particular course of action, Dotson has narrowed the field to a few sensible possibilities. Maybe the financial media will stop writing about the CDMA-GSM-HSPA-iDEN-WiMax monstrosity a T-Mobile-Sprint tie-up would create as a supposed inevitability.
Why are Clearwire and the cablecos more sensible partners than Sprint? Simple. Any deal with those entities would be much more limited, giving T-Mobile only what it needs and not a bunch of other baggage to deal with. Clearwire would give T-Mobile a temporary 4G network while it figures out its own long-term evolution situation. It might be tough (or at least very expensive) to get dual-mode handsets from WiMax and HSPA at T-Mobile’s 3G frequencies, but then again it doesn’t really need them. Remember T-Mobile is building the fastest 3G network in the country. HSPA+ should be able to handle anything a smartphone can throw at it until it cements its own LTE plans. Meanwhile, it could use the Clearwire WiMax for laptop cards, of which dual-mode versions are much easier to procure. Taking the bulk of mobile broadband access traffic off its 3G network would clear up a lot of room for Android phones.
As for the cable operators, it’s a perfect match. They have plenty of advanced wireless services spectrum (AWS) left over from their now-defunct SpectrumCo venture with Sprint. With the exception of Cox Communications none of them have used it. And it just so happens T-Mobile’s 3G network is built on the AWS band. The cable companies would get mobile voice and data services to complement their cable programming and broadband bundles, and unlike Cox, they’d probably rather avoid building the infrastructure themselves. T-Mobile would have access to its preferred spectrum in key markets around the country, and it would be free to build its preferred technology HSPA+ over that spectrum. It’s a no-brainer.
That’s our take on this, let us know what you think in the comments below: