dkyeager

I am not certain this number is still true. With Dish getting the sites they abandon, the inclination would likely be to retain more Sprint sites. FCC may have forced more rural coverage given 1x800 coverage compared to VoLTE. We know T-Mobile went through several revisions after those numbers were made public. Might be better numbers in the merger court decision.

How does that compare to the announced merger ratio?

Low hanging fruit first. Update firmware to VoLTE on most popular models that Sprint has not already done. Maybe convert markets that are not VoLTE compatible first. Then special deals for remaing phones that must have CDMA? The issue would then be the MVNOs.

The main merger focus would be on getting to the new T-Mobile network on a market by market basis, but Sprint must be kept alive in other areas. Quickly doing mutual roaming of some sort is a certainty. If this merger were to follow the Shentel-nTelos merger (to which it has a lot of technical advancement similarities), T-Mobile might accelerate Sprint VoLTE in terms of what was in progress but not complete along with any other software changes that do not require core hardware improvements. Continued site work would be possible but would have to pass more scrunity (ie only allow in places in markets that really need it until they are consolidated).

Agree with almost all, but T-Mobile may never release their plan. They have always been more cash flow/ ROI focused, so likely urban first. The could also go to where Sprint is losing the most money or their sites are the most congested, or places with the most marketing value in terms of improvement overall (shameless plug for Ohio, especially Columbus.)

T-Mobile has been try to pick off the more profitable areas of WV with new sites.

The impression from reading the national report is you have Verizon in the lead with AT&T trailing while T-Mobile and Sprint are grouped togther significantly further back. Individual state reports often show Sprint in third or even 2nd (Shentel).

Agree that the major factors are VoLTE and data performance. In the past the formulas was rigged against TDD (and still are), but Sprint has allowed the B41 upload speeds to drop to the point they are strangling performance. B25/ B41 CA or full n41 needed ASAP, along with increased backhaul.

Unions are certainly a factor. Attempting to get a better deal for your state was another, such as Texas (Republican) etc. General views on enforcement of merger deals is another. Rewarding a firm (Dish) that skirts the rules is yet additional factor. Basically a urban/rural divide both in search of lower prices. The rural areas often only have two real carrier choices while the urban have four. The irony is the FCC decision on 2.5 licenses no longer having to set aside a small percentage of the usage for non-profit use and in fact being saleable will have a much greater impact on prices in urban areas over time. Yet this seems uncontested. Bringing politics into this forum? Not needed and against the rules.

The negative press on Sprint in the merger process should be a significant factor in churn. Converting former Clear sites to triband should have had a significant performance impact yet has not dramatically appeared in Rootmetrics results. The rarity of B25 + B41 + B41 CA is a factor since that would solve band 41 upload congestion (5g would be even better). In my market attention is shifting to software updates. VoLTE came to Magic Boxes last week. Overall network improvements might just be a multistep process yet to be completed. The competition does not stand still for Sprint.

What was padding your set as?

The untouched areas where the judge could step in are likley the coverage distance/ building penetration between 1x800 and VoLTE, the handling of customers CDMA phones, billing transition, and a few areas where the new T-Mobile would totally dominate the spectrum licenses. These were all basically dictated in the Shentel nTelos merger.

Closing arguments in January, likely set to encourage a deal.

I would not rule out b26+b41 if the phone supprts it, especially if the b41 is a higher qam etc.

The press views this merger as win or lose while the DOJ and FCC say this: "Thus, the key question is whether any additional relief is necessary to protect competition and advance the public interest." ( from the above source). You can also see that other carriers (AT&T and Dish) and cable companies (Comcast and Altice) were trying to keep info out of the public eye. They appeared to be about 1/2 successful. A real treasure trove of documents.

https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/15758763/state-of-new-york-v-deutsche-telekom-ag/?page=3

Sent diagnostics just a few minutes ago from my Moto G7 Power Unlocked with Android 9 on Red Pocket ( T-Mobile). Main Screen Layout Padding set to 50, but not change. Same at 100.

$10 billion a reasonable start, but much more would be needed. https://www.wsj.com/articles/dishs-ergen-says-banks-lined-up-to-loan-10-billion-for-wireless-network-11576627114

If the merger is approved there is a huge amount of risk. The duo won' t stand still and certainly have enough money for counter attacks and more nefarious actions. Technical and marketing missteps could also become quite costly.

The real question is how is Nationwide VoLTE defined. The number of phones to be covered has already been scaled back. Will that date include Magic Boxes and Airaves? What about bringing in a VoLTE phone with no CDMA support to make calls on Sprint bands (ie, just uses one SIM card or eSIM not tied to that phone)? What will the coverage area be? Will it be shown on coverage maps?

Yes, Samsung S9 and likely its successors, but Sprint has to allow it first and enable sites etc.

You are correct at least on my unlocked Moto G7 power with Android 9. On my LG V20 with Android 8 it works fine.

Soon (TM)

Softbank would not suddenly wave a magic wand and all debt would disappear. Sprint would have to be absorbed or recapitialized in some fashion (ie devalue current shareholders), which would require a realistic plan that would have to pass muster. Then 5G investments could very easily put Sprint back into the poor house. It all goes back to economies of scale. It is more likely that Sprint will have greater difficulty getting capital without the merger, since their value in any other merger will decrease, if such a merger is even possible.

https://www.bloombergquint.com/onweb/sprint-can-survive-without-t-mobile-ex-ceo-claure-testifies https://www.breitbart.com/news/us-lawmakers-fault-regulators-on-t-mobile-sprint-tie-up/ The FCC and DOJ are the refs on the field. Needs to be a strong reason to overturn. Tweaks around the edges are another matter.