Sprint Reportedly Bowing Out of T-Mobile Bid (was "Sprint offer" and "Iliad" threads)

[WiWavelength]

I was referring to band 4 LTE. Forgot to specify no Band 41.

 

I am thinking of starting a musical group that will use exclusively iOS devices for production and recording.  I will call the group Band 41.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yVAQHs2zIM

 

 

AJ

[ericdabbs]

With the exception of the Nexus 5, of course.

 

Ahh touche!!

[sbolen]

I am thinking of starting a musical group that will use exclusively iOS devices for production and recording.  I will call the group Band 41.

 

AJ

 

Hard to hear the music over the hum of the operational excellence. 

[Fraydog]

The fun part is you could just wait until the iPhone 6 comes out and use Band 41 devices in band 41.

[WiWavelength]

Hard to hear the music over the hum of the operational excellence. 

Do not confuse that with the noise of cognitive dissonance.

 

 

AJ

[WiWavelength]

The fun part is you could just wait until the iPhone 6 comes out and use Band 41 devices in band 41.

Until or if?

 

 

AJ

[milan03]

It's not just divesting, but aligning contigous spectrum. Similar to what T-Mobile has done with AT&T and Verizon.  The goal is to shore up markets that need help and divest in markets that have excess.  Obviously we would need to go back to WiWavelenth's spreadsheets to really dig into market by market analysis.

When I say contiguous, I mean contiguity of combined PCS licenses. They're already aligned in quite a few Top 50 markets. 

It'd be great to see AJ chiming in, but here are a few examples:

 

Boston:

 

 

Dallas: 

 

NYC:

 

 

Phoenix:

 

 

Seattle:

 

 

 

I'm sure they'll have to divest some of their excessive spectrum, but in markets where they're setup for success, it would be smart to keep as much PCS as possible considering that CDMA/W-CDMA also has to be served out of PCS (for the time being). 

I'd much rather see them divest EBS/BRS.

[Nickel]

[WiWavelength]

 

Yes, it never ends, as does copying my ideas…

 

Criminy, can people give it a rest and stop rehashing the same concerns over and over again?  Because this thread has become the song that never ends...

 

http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/4099-lg-g2-the-first-sprint-tri-band-lte-handset-was-lg-optimus-g2/?p=218705

 

 

AJ

[Nickel]

Yes, it never ends, as does copying my ideas…

 

http://s4gru.com/index.php?/topic/4099-lg-g2-the-first-sprint-tri-band-lte-handset-was-lg-optimus-g2/?p=218705

 

 

AJ

Oh sorry, I've kinda stayed away from this thread.

[JThorson]

So here is a question. A friend of mine stated even if Sprint buys T-Mobile, the FCC wouldn't allow them to consolidate into one entity. He gave me no real reasons except the FCC wants to keep 4 players in the game, but then wouldn't they not approve the merger? Does anyone get what he is saying?

[gnoj]

When I say contiguous, I mean contiguity of combined PCS licenses. They're already aligned in quite a few Top 50 markets. 

It'd be great to see AJ chiming in, but here are a few examples...

 

Sprint has a few interesting options in Chicago as well, but any such moves would have to wait until after a merger is a done deal, or it is withdrawn.

 

So here is a question. A friend of mine stated even if Sprint buys T-Mobile, the FCC wouldn't allow them to consolidate into one entity. He gave me no real reasons except the FCC wants to keep 4 players in the game, but then wouldn't they not approve the merger? Does anyone get what he is saying?

 

The merger's raison d'etre is providing scale to compete with the duopoly. You can't have that scale if the two old company's networks are kept separate forever. I think there's little doubt that the CDMA and GSM/UMTS networks would continue to operate separately for a couple of years, perhaps under different brand names, but eventually there would only be a single massive LTE-A network w/ VoLTE, over multiple bands. A single GSM and CDMA carrier (in SMR) would hopefully be left up indefinitely to support legacy devices and, more importantly, provide last-ditch coverage.

 

So no, the FCC can't have it both ways. Either they maintain the status quo of 4 national(ish) carriers, or they approve a merger of the companies and their networks.

[bigsnake49]

Sprint has a few interesting options in Chicago as well, but any such moves would have to wait until after a merger is a done deal, or it is withdrawn.

 

 

The merger's raison d'etre is providing scale to compete with the duopoly. You can't have that scale if the two old company's networks are kept separate forever. I think there's little doubt that the CDMA and GSM/UMTS networks would continue to operate separately for a couple of years, perhaps under different brand names, but eventually there would only be a single massive LTE-A network w/ VoLTE, over multiple bands. A single GSM and CDMA carrier (in SMR) would hopefully be left up indefinitely to support legacy devices and, more importantly, provide last-ditch coverage.

 

So no, the FCC can't have it both ways. Either they maintain the status quo of 4 national(ish) carriers, or they approve a merger of the companies and their networks.

Where do you see them fitting GSM in SMR? Is GSM/WCDMA even approved for the SMR band?

[greenvillesc]

Thank you Fraydog...that's what I thought.

Wow so if the merger does go through..The new Co will have

600/700/800/1700/2100/1900/2500

Jesus.

yes.... But devices and the network is having problems now with deciding what frequency to choose with only a few different choices to pick from.

[WiWavelength]

When I say contiguous, I mean contiguity of combined PCS licenses. They're already aligned in quite a few Top 50 markets. 

It'd be great to see AJ chiming in, but here are a few examples:

 

Yeah, I have been tracking Sprint's PCS licenses for over a decade.  And I started tracking T-Mobile's PCS licenses a year or two ago.  Below are two spreadsheets, albeit unfinished, that can be used to check for contiguity of PCS licenses between Sprint and T-Mobile in numerous major markets.

 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ArY31Mr219-ydGR3WVMwdjdXOVdzZTdhYjdWZk9oLUE&usp=drive_web#gid=0

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ArY31Mr219-ydG15eGR2aTR3ZDJ4ZW5GSGhza0FUQnc&usp=drive_web#gid=0

 

Even absent a Sprint-T-Mobile merger or joint venture, I do think that we will still see greater contiguity in the PCS band in the coming years -- a la what has happened in the AWS-1 band over the past two years.  As CDMA2000 and GSM are retired, PCS licensees will seek to swap and rearrange 10 MHz (5 MHz FDD) blocks so that they have a minimum of 20 MHz (10 MHz FDD) contiguous spectrum.

 

AJ

[WiWavelength]

Where do you see them fitting GSM in SMR? Is GSM/WCDMA even approved for the SMR band?

 

No, I believe he meant that just CDMA1X would be relegated to only SMR.  GSM, if it remained at all, would stay in PCS.

 

AJ

[Destroyallcubes]

How efficient is a gsm vs CDMA spectrum wise?

[WiWavelength]

How efficient is a gsm vs CDMA spectrum wise?

 

Not very efficient.  To deploy a multi cell GSM network with minimal co channel interference, the minimum spectrum allocation is 4.8 MHz.  And that allows for only one channel per sector, hence 7 full rate or 14 half rate available time slots -- the BCCH takes up one full rate time slot, regardless.  So, GSM is kept around at its bare minimum mostly for intermittent machine to machine connections and for the roamer with an old/incompatible handset.

 

AJ

[Destroyallcubes]

Not very efficient.  To deploy a multi cell GSM network with minimal co channel interference, the minimum spectrum allocation is 4.8 MHz.  And that allows for only one channel per sector, hence 7 full rate or 14 half rate available time slots -- the BCCH takes up one full rate time slot, regardless.  So, GSM is kept around at its bare minimum mostly for intermittent machine to machine connections and for the roamer with an old/incompatible handset.

 

AJ

So it would be more efficient(if a merger happened) to keep 1x800 around instead of the GSM carrier? Or would there have to be both around? I would assume if they had a plan to launch a full LTE network leaving even WCDMA behind it could possibly get approval. It would be one of the First, if not first all LTE network, and would have the spectrum to handle the 100+million people network. And the amount of people on it would balance the expense of expanding LTE nationwide. Plus get rid of less efficient technology. Besides that what would be the beat way spectrum wise to do a merger?

[milan03]

Yeah, I have been tracking Sprint's PCS licenses for over a decade.  And I started tracking T-Mobile's PCS licenses a year or two ago.  Below are two spreadsheets, albeit unfinished, that can be used to check for contiguity of PCS licenses between Sprint and T-Mobile in numerous major markets.

 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ArY31Mr219-ydGR3WVMwdjdXOVdzZTdhYjdWZk9oLUE&usp=drive_web#gid=0

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ArY31Mr219-ydG15eGR2aTR3ZDJ4ZW5GSGhza0FUQnc&usp=drive_web#gid=0

 

Even absent a Sprint-T-Mobile merger or joint venture, I do think that we will still see greater contiguity in the PCS band in the coming years -- a la what has happened in the AWS-1 band over the past two years.  As CDMA2000 and GSM are retired, PCS licensees will seek to swap and rearrange 10 MHz (5 MHz FDD) blocks so that they have a minimum of 20 MHz (10 MHz FDD) contiguous spectrum.

 

AJ

Thanks for the charts, AJ. Yeah I agree, once the legacy networks start to go offline, PCS swaps will become much easier to execute. If the merger happens to go through, in markets were PCS is already aligned they could start leveraging the contiguity immediately. 

[bigsnake49]

Yeah, I have been tracking Sprint's PCS licenses for over a decade.  And I started tracking T-Mobile's PCS licenses a year or two ago.  Below are two spreadsheets, albeit unfinished, that can be used to check for contiguity of PCS licenses between Sprint and T-Mobile in numerous major markets.

 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ArY31Mr219-ydGR3WVMwdjdXOVdzZTdhYjdWZk9oLUE&usp=drive_web#gid=0

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ArY31Mr219-ydG15eGR2aTR3ZDJ4ZW5GSGhza0FUQnc&usp=drive_web#gid=0

 

Even absent a Sprint-T-Mobile merger or joint venture, I do think that we will still see greater contiguity in the PCS band in the coming years -- a la what has happened in the AWS-1 band over the past two years.  As CDMA2000 and GSM are retired, PCS licensees will seek to swap and rearrange 10 MHz (5 MHz FDD) blocks so that they have a minimum of 20 MHz (10 MHz FDD) contiguous spectrum.

 

AJ

AJ, does the T-Mobile spreadsheet include the Metro PCS spectrum?

[WiWavelength]

AJ, does the T-Mobile spreadsheet include the Metro PCS spectrum?

 

No, I created the T-Mobile chart in March 2012.  Let me see if I did anything license specific on T-Mobile-MetroPCS, too.

 

Regardless, MetroPCS -- despite its moniker -- did not affect combined PCS holdings in that many markets, as MetroPCS held minimal PCS or entirely AWS in several of its handful of markets.

 

For reference, see this article that I wrote:

 

http://s4gru.com/index.php?/blog/1/entry-326-newco-needs-to-drop-some-of-the-pcs-from-metropcs/

 

AJ

[bigsnake49]

No, I created the T-Mobile chart in March 2012.  Let me see if I did anything license specific on T-Mobile-MetroPCS, too.

 

Regardless, MetroPCS -- despite its moniker -- did not affect combined PCS holdings in that many markets, as MetroPCS held minimal PCS or entirely AWS in several of its handful of markets.

 

For reference, see this article that I wrote:

 

http://s4gru.com/index.php?/blog/1/entry-326-newco-needs-to-drop-some-of-the-pcs-from-metropcs/

 

AJ

 

Thanks, I remember that chart. If Sprint and T-Mobile were to merge they will own prodigious amount of spectrum of PCS spectrum. That's excluding any spectrum swaps or hosting deals they might sign with Dish. They might want to swap some PCS spectrum for 700MHz to assemble a 1<GHz portfolio or wait until 600Mhz and then swap some 700MHz spectrum for 600MHz spectrum. I don't want them to have too many sub 1GHz bands.

 

I wonder if they can swap/reband their 900MHz SMR holdings for spectrum in the 800MHz band (take the guard+expansion band + another 1MHz into the B/ILT band. Of course that won't be necessary for the Solinc area where they can do a straight swap. According to the chart in this article (page 10):

http://www.motorolasolutions.com/web/Business/Content_Groups/800_MHz/STATICFILES/Overview_and_Status_of_Rebanding_05-02-07.pdf

There is full 10MHz of spectrum in the Southeast for both companies. They can sweeten the pot by giving Solinc discounts on LTE in their geographical area.

Edited June 7, 2014 by bigsnake49

[dkyeager]

Maybe Masa Son can use his large billfold to bribe those government officials just like the large two do. Could get things going in Sprints favor. But a sprint/Tmobile merger would have to focus on coverage expansion, getting LTE to every site ATT/Verizon has. Beat them on the coverage, plus claim the fastest. Use microwave backhaul until Fiber arrives and recycle the temporary microwave dishes during rollout.

it is known as k street. The big two are used to working regulations as a barrier to entry.

 

sent by tapatalk from my LS-980 (G2)

[blakebaa]

 

Hmm...