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Will LTE service on Rural Roaming Preferred Program partner networks be native coverage for Sprint customers?


S4GRU

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by Robert Herron

Sprint 4G Rollout Updates

Thursday, July 10, 2014 - 1:30 PM MDT

 

A few months back, Sprint announced new group partnerships with members of the CCA (Competitive Carriers Association) to expand the availability of Sprint LTE availability in many places across the country outside Sprint service areas. Additionally, Sprint has recently formed a subgroup of current/future LTE providers of the CCA that is referred to as the Rural Roaming Preferred Program (RRPP). Announcing such a deal with nTelos in May, and nearly another dozen in June.

 

Sprint is part of the over-arching CCA, and working with its large membership group to establish a national LTE roaming group. However, where the action is happening now is with the Rural Roaming Preferred Program. RRPP members are joining a specific Sprint alliance which gives them more direct access to Sprint, their vendors, technology, devices and most importantly…Sprint’s vast spectrum holdings.

 

As it has been explained to us, CCA members who are not a part of Sprint’s RRRP program are using their own spectrum and resources. Current disclosed members of the RRRP are regional and rural providers nTelos, C-Spire Wireless, SouthernLINC Wireless, Nex-Tech Wireless, Carolina West Wireless, VTel Wireless, Flat Wireless, MobileNation/SI Wireless, Inland Cellular, Illinois Valley Cellular, James Valley Telecommunications and Phoenix Wireless. There are more currently in discussion. Some speculate US Cellular will be announced soon, but we have not been able to confirm that.

 

The news of the CCA and RRPP partnerships was well received by Sprint customers and members of the S4GRU community. Our members have been stoked at this announcement for months. Craving more details. When is this going to happen? Where, exactly? And the most important question to our readers has been, ‘how will the service be treated…native or roaming?’

 

In press conferences, news releases and media coverage, it is often being referred to as “LTE roaming” deals. When people see the term roaming, they immediately conjure up ideas of monthly limits or added expenses. For instance, most Sprint postpaid plans currently limit their 1xRTT and 3G EVDO data roaming to only 100MB or 300MB per month. That’s not very much. So many of our members at S4GRU have wondered whether these “LTE roaming” deals would count against current very limited roaming allotments, or if something more generous would be provided on partner LTE networks. This has been the source of some anxiety to our members who want to be excited about this, but want to understand the full impact to their usage behaviors.

 

Drum roll, please…

 

We recently have received verification from a Sprint executive, who will remain anonymous, that the coverage with the RRPP providers will be treated as native. Fully native. When you are on these rural partner networks, it will be like you are on your Sprint LTE coverage and all your normal account usages will be allowed.

 

If you have a 1GB data plan with Sprint. Your usage on these other networks counts against your 1GB monthly allotment. And if you have an unlimited plan on Sprint, you can use unlimited smartphone data on these rural partner networks.

 

The executive said the point of these new coverages is to provide a seamless customer experience travelling from Sprint LTE coverage into these new rural partner coverage areas. To feel like they are on the Sprint network. And maybe even better in many instances given the lightly used rural nature of this additional coverage. They want Sprint customers, and in turn rural partner customers on the Sprint network, to enjoy a cohesive and expanded national LTE footprint. Something that makes them more competitive with the duopoly.

 

Some of these rural partners already have their own operating LTE networks on varied spectrum holdings. And others are counting on Sprint spectrum to host their LTE networks or supplement them. We are told that existing LTE networks from these RRPP members on frequencies that current Sprint LTE devices support should be open as soon as logistically possible. Maybe even this summer. They continue to work out some network bugs and billing/authentication issues. Additional LTE frequencies in Band 4 and Band 12 are anticipated to be added to new upcoming devices at the end of this year or early next year and will add even more mileage.

 

This is great news for Sprint customers. This will open up a lot more LTE coverage. Upon full implementation, the coverage will be quite expansive in square miles. When other CCA partner providers coverage comes online, Sprint should be able to handily eclipse AT&T’s LTE network coverage. Which has recently been purported to be mothballed by AT&T, with no timelines in place to restart. We currently do not know the details of VoLTE (Voice over LTE) on these partner networks. But a VTel Wireless executive did mention recently in a Fierce Wireless article that they were deploying VoLTE themselves. Sprint has been very mum on their VoLTE plans internally or through partners.

 

We currently do not know if the LTE coverage that is provided by CCA members outside the RRPP will be counted as native the same way. Though T-Mobile is a member of the CCA, they are not a member of Sprint’s RRPP. So Sprint and its customers may see some unique advantages in both off network usage being counted as native and the availability of many more spectrum bands and more coverage than other standard CCA members experience.

 

We excitedly watch and discuss the progress in S4GRU forums. Stay tuned.

 

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CCA Partners Sprint referenced this past March:

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What frequencies are bands 4 and 12? I may already know when I read the frequencies, but what are the prior-to-LTE uses of these bands?

 

The CCA and RRPP are the biggest thing Sprint has going for it aside from NV2.0. Carrier aggregation and the like are peanuts compared to this.

 

Is that map our expected LTE coverage when implemented? Eventually? We don't have much impact on Big Red in the Dakotas, but we have similar dominating coverage in other areas where they are weak.

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What frequencies are bands 4 and 12? I may already know when I read the frequencies, but what are the prior-to-LTE uses of these bands?

 

The CCA and RRPP are the biggest thing Sprint has going for it aside from NV2.0. Carrier aggregation and the like are peanuts compared to this.

 

Is that map our expected LTE coverage when implemented? Eventually? We don't have much impact on Big Red in the Dakotas, but we have similar dominating coverage in other areas where they are weak.

 

Band 4 is AWS, and Band 12 is 700MHz A/B/C block.  The resource I use for LTE bands and EARFCN/frequencies is this website:  http://niviuk.free.fr/lte_band.php

 

Yes, with full CCA implementation, the green in the bottom map shows a fully built out and anticipated coverage.  Sprint is expected to expand native coverages themselves in some strategic places where there is no CCA coverage.  Or work with existing RRPP or Sprint Affiliates to expand coverages in those areas.

 

This will be very beneficial, possibly even necessary, in some booming areas like the Dakotas.

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Very excited to see all that green in Northern New England! Is there a higher resolution map of CCA coverage anywhere? The map on their website is even smaller than the one linked in this post, and does not indicate if it is LTE-specific.

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What frequencies are bands 4 and 12? I may already know when I read the frequencies, but what are the prior-to-LTE uses of these bands?

 

The CCA and RRPP are the biggest thing Sprint has going for it aside from NV2.0. Carrier aggregation and the like are peanuts compared to this.

 

Is that map our expected LTE coverage when implemented? Eventually? We don't have much impact on Big Red in the Dakotas, but we have similar dominating coverage in other areas where they are weak.

Don't forget, Sprint has some PCS G block buildout requirements to meet, and most of those are in the Dakotas, Montana, and Wyoming. So there will be some additional Sprint coverage in those areas. We just don't know how much.

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Thanks, I was trying that one too but nothing happens. Must be from S4GRU users swamping their site ;)

 

Try the link now.  I removed the HTTPS and that did the trick,

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So I'm curious what Rural carrier could be covering the area southwest of Tyler Tx(east Texas)? The only other carrier is a Verizon affiliate.

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So I'm curious what Rural carrier could be covering the area southwest of Tyler Tx(east Texas)? The only other carrier is a Verizon affiliate.

 

There are Verizon rural partners participating in the CCA.  They will be opening up new coverage on their sites.  These would be separate from the Verizon LTE network.

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The unfortunate side effect of this...

 

If you have a rural CCA carrier (ahem... Illinois Valley Cellular) which does not currently have a LTE network.  Sprint also does not offer LTE in a chunk of this area (GMO sites, spaced too far apart, etc.)

 

I predict that IVC will never go the route of creating their own LTE network - rather 'waiting' on Sprint to do full-build towers around here - which seems like will never happen.

 

I can see that this alliance is a GOOD thing, but I'm worried that it may stymie improvements in the covered areas from either side.  Is my concern valid?

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The unfortunate side effect of this...

 

If you have a rural CCA carrier (ahem... Illinois Valley Cellular) which does not currently have a LTE network.  Sprint also does not offer LTE in a chunk of this area (GMO sites, spaced too far apart, etc.)

 

I predict that IVC will never go the route of bumping their own LTE network up - rather 'waiting' on Sprint to do full-build towers around here - which seems like will never happen.

 

I can see that this alliance is a GOOD thing, but I'm worried that it may stymie improvements from either side.  Is my concern valid?

 

I don't think you need to worry.  As a part of this deal IVC will be adding Sprint spectrum for LTE to its current network.  Sprint is even offering financing assistance to help pay for these partners.  IVC will be building out its own LTE network and will be available to Sprint customers.  We just don't know the timelines yet.

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There are Verizon rural partners participating in the CCA. They will be opening up new coverage on their sites. These would be separate from the Verizon LTE network.

 

Robert

Oh so basically they will run LTE with Verizon back end, and also Sprint spectrum LTE as well? But Sprint only having access to the Sprint side of the deal, and same for Verizon?
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Oh so basically they will run LTE with Verizon back end, and also Sprint spectrum LTE as well? But Sprint only having access to the Sprint side of the deal, and same for Verizon?

 

We don't know all the details, but Verizon Rural LTE partners can make deals using the CCA for LTE completely separate from the Verizon network.

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Oh so basically they will run LTE with Verizon back end, and also Sprint spectrum LTE as well? But Sprint only having access to the Sprint side of the deal, and same for Verizon?

I thought he meant that they will basically have two different networks.

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Thanks, I was trying that one too but nothing happens. Must be from S4GRU users swamping their site ;)

 

I also now have added a larger CCA member coverage map at the bottom, that is much higher resolution.  You can click on it and it will enlarge to its fullest extent.

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I also now have added a larger CCA member coverage map at the bottom, that is much higher resolution.  You can click on it and it will enlarge to its fullest extent.

 

Robert

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  • Like 5
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Hells yeah! I was really worried that Carolina West couldn't participate due to LTEiRA, so this is great news! I'm sure that the ASU students will be happy to have LTE for the first time.

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Hells yeah! I was really worried that Carolina West couldn't participate due to LTEiRA, so this is great news! I'm sure that the ASU students will be happy to have LTE for the first time.

 

They might also be happy to be referred to as Appalachian State, since "ASU" de facto means Arizona State -- one of the largest universities by enrollment in the entire country.

 

AJ

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Glad to see you post an article again. It has been a while since we have had the fearless leader do a write up. Welcome back! I look forward to more.

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