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RedSpark

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Posts posted by RedSpark

  1. Some big news for NYC Today:

     

    Sprint Launches LTE Plus in New York City

    • LTE Plus is now available in 191 Markets
    • Since the beginning of the year, Sprint doubled the speed and capacity of more than 900 2.5GHz cell sites across the New York Metropolitan Area with the deployment of two-channel carrier aggregation.
    • According to Sprint’s analysis of Nielsen Mobile Performance data, Sprint now delivers the fastest LTE download speeds in New York.
    • Within the past six months, Sprint has added or upgraded service at several popular locations such as Rockefeller Center, the 9/11 Memorial, Jacob Javits Center, JFK International Airport, and The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum.
    • Sprint continues to lead with more stations on air to-date than any other carrier. Sprint is contracted to complete all seven phases of 279 underground stations in the New York City subway project. Sprint will be deploying 4G LTE to all underground stations and service will be ready for customers in 2017.

    Also, see this video:

     

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1G-lZgVjjc

     

     

    Great job Sprint!

    • Like 10
  2. I'm curious how Marcelo or other Sprint employees assigned to this managed to find these "customers". From all the talk about it from Marcelo, this sounded as if it were going to be an informal chat between Marcelo and Sprint customers about their views regarding Sprint, what they like about Sprint, what they don't like about Sprint, and what could make Sprint better. It certainly wasn't made to seem like a marketing opportunity for Sprint to make ads out of bashing their competitors.

     

    The process by which they found these people was very mysterious. I'm sure they had to sign some kind of release for their comments to be used. Otherwise, I have no idea how they found these people.

    • Like 2
  3. It's weird because it's Bluhm in the article I linked saying they're gonna "wait and see".

     

    I don't think they should disclose all details, but transparency about testing should be out in the open. 5G is access to new markets in the future, and gives carriers greater opportunity to generate revenue than LTE allows today. I really hope they got some good things in the works!

     

    I agree. Sprint is building a 5G network architecture, but they don't want to call it 5G yet for some reason. Tarek Robbiati made it very clear that they're building for 5G, not 4G. LTE Advanced has much more runway to offer Sprint than other carriers, especially with how it can scale to 3xCA, 4xCA and 5xCA.

     

    I don't think the "Wait and See" really changes anything on the ground. It's still happening, whether it's called 5G or not.

  4. http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/sprint-taking-wait-and-see-approach-5g/2016-04-13

     

    Well, I don't like this. While 200MHz of 2.5GHz is solid, it's not entirely nationwide. Furthermore, some of the others have 1GHz of EHF spectrum, and are prepped to kick off testing. They need to stop messing around & deliver because all the public cares about is sheer speed, reliability, & availability.

     

    I don't think Sprint wants to share its playbook, but I'm convinced Sprint will be doing some interesting things with unlicensed spectrum.

     

    Have a look at this related article in which Jay Bluhm, VP of network planning at Sprint says unlicensed spectrum is "critical":

     

     

    Perhaps more interesting was the discussion on the use of unlicensed spectrum, with Bluhm noting unlicensed was “critical” for Sprint, though not for the reasons it might be for other operators.

     

    “We don’t have a need from a capacity perspective,” Bluhm said, adding the biggest challenge was to find a way to deploy services over unlicensed spectrum that continued to meet the quality of service expectations of cellular customers.

     

  5. Another miscalculated move. Agree they should try to move on. Can the whole series from the listening tour and start over.

     

    I think Marcelo would benefit just as much from doing a listening tour to his retail stores, web team, and social media/PR team.

     

    He should go to the top performing stores in regions to learn what works... and the lowest performing stores to learn what doesn't. And if changes need to be made in personnel, procedure, whatever.... make them within 24 hours.

     

    At the risk of repeating myself, have him use one of the in-store sales terminals. Have him convince a customer to get TEP. All these things that work in theory in the boardroom or cubicle, he needs to experience them on the ground.

    • Like 3
  6. So if we throw formalities to the side, all Sprint is doing is getting a loan to pay off another loan??? 

     

    Maybe a merger between #3 and #4 is the end game here.

     

    Basically. Sprint is getting a favorable rate loan from SoftBank (vs. what it would get on the open debt market) using a mix of network assets as collateral which will allow Sprint to readily meet/satisfy its upcoming debt obligations.

     

    Because SoftBank really can't put more money into Sprint without triggering the tender offer clause at 85% ownership (per the merger conditions that would require SoftBank to buy the remaining Sprint shares in their entirety), this is how SoftBank can continue to fund Sprint. Plus, the debt is not directly on Sprint's balance sheet or SoftBank's.... at least as I understand it.

     

    Merger between #3 and #4? Perhaps... but not in an election year.

  7. I don't get why Sprint is still spinning its wheels when it comes to customer interface nearly 2 years after Marcelo taking over, and with all this supposed cleaning house. He must either not know what he's doing or he didn't clean the right people out or didn't do it extensively enough. Hell, maybe they are oblivious and think everything is just fine.

     

    The sales/retail section of the website is much better than it used to be. I have to give them credit for that.

     

    The Coverage Map page is awful, and now with the new yellow colors being used for Data, essentially indecipherable.

     

    The Newsroom/Press page is horribly designed and doesn't reflect well to members of the press covering Sprint developments.

     

    The truth is that there was a lot broken as far as Sprint's website goes. I'm convinced they must have migrated to an all new retail/billing database, because it's the only explanation for why it would have taken so long to get this far.

     

    Perhaps some people are still handling or in charge of some essential functions as it relates to the website, social media and messaging who shouldn't be. It's hard to say for sure without being a fly on the wall. I can only go by what I see as presented as the final customer/media facing product... and in some cases, it's woefully substandard and does not reflect the professional/industry caliber of Sprint.

    • Like 2
  8. No one said "ghetto people use T-Mobile." She said the T-Mobile service was ghetto. Big difference and big misinterpretations of that word based on where people live. It's still a dumb ad to run but the critics need to calm down.

     

    Doesn't matter. Perception is everything, and Sprint had no business being anywhere close to this in terms of rhetoric.

     

    Marcelo's marketing department and Chief of Staff let him down, plain and simple.

    • Like 4
  9. Well, you have to figure out what is the true purpose of the Listening Tour.

     

    Sent from my SM-N910 using Tapatalk

     

    After this well-publicized blow-up (and I mean, it's everywhere now), I don't think anyone is going to want to share their true thoughts with Marcelo on Sprint or other carriers because of the blow back risk.

     

    In my honest opinion, it's time to wrap it up.

    • Like 2
  10. Although I think listening in general is a great idea, was a "listening tour" really necessary?

     

    Most consumers barely have any loyalty to what has basically become a commodity service.  What consumers do have are memories of bad experiences of network performance, poor customer service or both.  You don't need to talk to customers to figure that out.

     

    Instead, how about a "getting things done tour."

     

    I don't think Marcelo should be on a tower rig installing antennas. But he should be forced to use the Point of Sale terminals in a retail store to truly experience what the frontline reps do when making a sale. Have him do a TEP add-on too.

     

    Heck, show him thanking the people in the field who upgrade Sprint towers across the country.

     

    Even better. Show him going to one of the Top Ten Tower Sites that used be be on his "S*** list" and show before/after coverage and speed tests. Show him shaking the hands of the techs who did the upgrades. Then show him talking to nearby customers about how Sprint has improved and demonstrate the improved speeds/coverage.

     

    Shortly after arriving, Claure began daily meetings about Sprint’s worst-performing cell sites—what the network team called the Top 10 S--- List. With about 20 executives around a table or dialing in, Claure brought up each site responsible for large numbers of dropped calls and asked how it would be fixed within 24 hours.

     

    If a site was still on the list the next day, Claure would ask again: Should an antenna be tilted up or down or sideways, so it points toward more customers? Does Sprint need to add antennas, or use antennas with more bandwidth? “It was painful,” says John Saw, Sprint’s chief technology officer. “But it was good for getting the network fixed.”

    • Like 4
  11. Its a figure of speech.  Just poor oversight Marcelo shouldn't get any blame for really.  He didn't say it, Im pretty sure he didn't edit or post that video, shoot maybe didn't even review the video before it was posted.  Heck, maybe he was the one to ask to take it down. 

     

    Someone else he trusted approved this video most likely. If we want to go all the way to the top, Roger Sole, Chief Marketing Officer might have had the final say on it for all we know.

  12. Sprint marketing was trying to use Marcelo to beat Legere at his own game, but missed the mark.

     

    I'll go one further.... Not only did they miss the mark, but they shouldn't have been aiming for anything anywhere near this. And there goes all the goodwill and positive PR from the "Listening Tour", undone in a single moment.

     

    Marcelo isn't John Legere, nor should he try to be, or listen to anyone who says he needs to be.

    • Like 4
  13. This incident is indicative of a much greater issue in my opinion: Sprint's Social Media/Communications/PR strategy is dysfunctional and needs a reorganization/alignment from the top down. From my outside perspective, it appears that you've got silos of people working in a disconnected way. How did these YouTube videos get released on a soon-to-be-orphaned YouTube channel named "Listening Tour" with 33 subscribers? Why not release them on Sprint's official YouTube channel? It's stuff like that which drives me crazy.

     

    Sun Tzu has said: “If there is disturbance in the camp, the general's authority is weak.” 

     

    So Marcelo needs to have Roger Sole, his new Chief Marketing Officer, do a complete overhaul of Sprint's communications/social media/PR from the top down, and if that means some people have to be shown the door, so be it. Update the format and appearance of the Sprint Newsroom Page so that it looks more professional. Much of the content there (especially the Press Kits) has poor formatting, copy editing and proofreading not befitting a professional organization. Sprint also needs to get its Social Media channels aligned so that it's not releasing one-off content on to-be-orphaned YouTube channels, etc.

     

    Marcelo will never be a Twitter Celeb like Legere. It just won't happen. So, Sprint has to play to what should be its strengths: Integrity, Value, Customer Service

     

    Sprint could run an entire positive-focused ad campaign based on "Yeah, we know we let you down in the past. But we're much better now with LTE Plus, and we're a better value than the competition. Give us a try for 30 days and see what you think for yourself".

     

    People can relate to that, and it would work.

    • Like 13
  14. For them to see better future, they have to stop bleeding customers and also attract customers.  for that to happen,  the network has to be reliable, that means even if a customer is inside a building, he should have voice and data connection.  If not he will leave. Marcelo is right about one thing:  most people will not leave a carrier because of cost but mainly because of network issues.  I have 5 att lines and pay more than comparable plans from sprint and t mobile.  I do not switch over to sprint or tmobile because I believe their networks are not up to par.  But if verizon offer me the same rate I will switch over in a heart beat.  This is what Marcelo must aim for but it will cost money.  Sitting out of 600Mhz auction and cutting corners on capex will delay the inevitable BK.  

     

    See this article:

     

    600MHz spectrum won't be deployable until at least 2021, and Tarek believes it isn't enough to make a difference for Sprint. It's also quite a way off, so it's not a short term fix for Sprint by any means.

     

    At this point, we know that Sprint is sitting out the auction... but we don't know for sure whether SoftBank is:

     

    See this article:

     

    Evercore predicted AT&T could walk away with 30.8 percent of all the airwaves sold at auction, spending $11.7 billion for 20 MHz. T-Mobile could spend $7.3 billion for 12 MHz, claiming 19.2 percent of the spectrum sold, and Verizon could pay $5.9 billion for 10 MHz.

     

    Interestingly, Evercore said Sprint parent SoftBank could spend the same amount of money as Verizon during the auction, also pocketing 15.4 percent all the airwaves sold. SoftBank's name doesn't appear on the FCC's list of applicants to participate, but Evercore said it may have applied under a different name.

     

    Sprint won't participate in the auction.

    • Like 2
  15. BlackBerry's CEO just confirmed that the Priv is not going to be carried by Sprint:

    https://twitter.com/JohnChen/status/719666928218939392

    Marcelo originally said that a new BlackBerry would be coming to Sprint way back on March 26, 2015:

    https://twitter.com/marceloclaure/status/581209417716240384

    I wonder what changed re Sprint since it was included in the Priv announcement that was made on January 6, 2016:

    https://twitter.com/BlackBerry/status/684818351709917184

    • Like 1
  16. I wonder how much there paying all these top noch presidents. There debt is worse then expected 3b5f20ef650950e992106304d3edf9ad.jpg

     

    Sent from my SM-G928P using Tapatalk

     

    Son said a lot more things last year besides being a "busy guy". He has reaffirmed his support for Sprint multiple times, but they don't bother to mention that in the article.

     

    SoftBank has since made multiple share purchases of Sprint stock and it's right up against the 85% ownership threshold, which if exceeded, would result in SoftBank having to acquire the rest of Sprint.

     

    The Bloomberg Article on which this Seeking Alpha post is based strikes me as a hit piece. I'll bet someone is shorting Sprint stock today.

    • Like 1
  17. It's a great idea, although sprints problems still remain. --- the network is still an issue even though it has made huge gains.

    Hopefully these guys will keep the pressure on to get these upgrades and small cells going.

     

    Hopefully the regional/local managers have a better sense of what's going on in their specific market and can better direct those improvements as needed.

    • Like 2
  18. Sprint just announced a new President for Florida, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands:

    Claudio Hidalgo Joins Sprint as President, Florida, Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands Region

     

    Prior to joining Sprint, Hidalgo was Chief Operating Officer for Caribe and Central America for Digicel Group. Before that he had been with NII Holdings, Inc. in positions that included chief operating officer of Nextel Brazil and Chief Executive Officer of Nextel Chile. Claudio was responsible for leading the company’s operations, providing strategic guidance and identifying and capturing growth opportunities.

     

    Marcelo has recruited some top talent for One Sprint. He's basically put a CEO in charge of each of the 4 geographical regions (West, Central, South, Northeast) and a manager in charge of 19 specific regions within those 4 areas.

     

    It's remarkable how many of these Area and Regional presidents are senior management or CEO's from other companies, like Claudio. Marcelo has poached a number of regional presidents from Verizon too.

     

    The thinking here is, we're going to put you (as a former CEO or senior manager with experience from another company) in charge of this Sprint area or region. You run it as if you are the CEO or manager. You report your results up the chain. I think it's a great idea.

    • Like 5
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