DCC233

Just got off the call for Shentel's Q3 earnings and figured I would put an update on here.  I had to duck off at the end the call and was having difficulty finding the slides mentioned in the presentation, but below are my poor notes from the call:

• 41% of all data on their network is from LTE (all 1900)
• 15% of all voice usage is on 800
• They are aiming to launch 800 LTE in the first quarter of 2014 on their network and their entire network is ready once they receive the confirmation from Sprint for deployment.
• They are aiming to start refarming more 1900 carriers in late 2014 as more customers migrate from 3G to 4G devices to accomodate the additional data demands at each tower.
• They are seeing average throughput of 8-10 on the downlink on 1900 and 1-2 on the uplink for LTE

Implementation of Spark will require the renegotiation of their contract with Sprint as it only covers 800 and 1900 services currently.  The don't forecast additional expenditures for Spark in their markets until 2015.  They sounded optimistic about Sprint allowing them access to deploy 2.5 through their market.  It is interesting that Clearwire was/is in the process of deploying 2.5 in the Harrisburg/Hershey and York markets which fall under Shentel's umbrella.  Given Shentel's speed for deploying NV I would think that once the agreement is made the deployment would progress very quickly.

Overall they had a good quarter.  They had net subscriber adds in pre-paid and post.

The frequency you are on is handled by your phone. Different PRLs will change witch network your phone prefers.

I also believe different phones have different PRLs and versions there within, so experiences will vary accordingly.  Though I could be wrong.

I took a bike ride around Lancaster yesterday and rerouted a few times based on Sprint's tower locations.  Noticed the tower off of Geist Road (behind The Worship Center in Leola, PA) had new radios and RRUs installed.  It wasn't broadcasting, but like the tower off rt 222 behind the Lancaster Bible College, everything appeared to be installed but the cabling was not connected to the cabinets.

Lot's of progress in Lancaster as of recently.  Wish I could map it on Sensorly.

Never attempted to post pictures before so here is attempt number 2:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ybkhih61fw036jl/DSC04290.jpg

https://www.dropbox.com/s/tm2qieqeml72kwv/DSC04289.jpg

https://www.dropbox.com/s/j8v6y7944thfqus/DSC04288.jpg

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ermvs8waoxexjsy/DSC04286.JPG

https://www.dropbox.com/s/dlde1b36hzkry5l/DSC04284.JPG

These pictures are from the tower on the campus of Lancaster Bible College just of Rt. 222.  

As you can see the radios and RRUs have been installed but are awaiting final connection the the cabinets.  

I didn't take picture of it but the ground leading up to the tower had been recently dug up for what I'm assuming is the new fiber run as there was a new buried cable box near the site labeled as "Sprint".

I would expect LTE 1900 to come online before 800 voice is launched based on historic trends.

Lancaster is a Round 2 market for 2.6 I believe, so it probably won't launch officially until the end of this year/early next year.  

Overall I'm happy with the progress.  Hope you are too.

Well I have noticed that I don't have the greatest of signals around that area. I just saw brand new cabinets that were very small and had a very close resemblance to Sprint's NV Cabinets. Maybe it's T-Mobile's equipment, I don't know if they are putting up new cabinets with their LTE rollout as well.

You are correct.  Sprint is not located on the tower.  Clear is located there and is in the process up putting in there 2.6 LTE equipment.  Sprint's "tower" is actually just off 222 on the silo behind Lancaster Bible College.

The tower on the silo that is behind The Lancaster Bible College has the RRU installed this past week.  I can't wait until they bring that one online.  The network in Lancaster has been on/off these past few weeks as they have really started working.

Since they no longer get revenue from lines they run to the towers since they spun that business off to Lumos networks they are now a one trick pony for their revenue. I wouldn't think they would have as strong a bargaining position anymore as a loss of the sprint revenue would be damaging.

My theory is that they will do their "tough" negotiation stance for a little but will see something announced in the next two months about there buildout of LTE which will include sprint bands.

I just posted this down in the forum but I thought it would be a relevant repost here:

Shentel highlights from their earnings release:

- As of December 31, 2012, the Company had upgraded 200 of its 516 cell sites to 4G LTE, covering 55% of our covered PCS POPs

-The Company expects that capital spending will remain elevated, particularly during the first half of 2013, as the Company works to complete cell site upgrades as part of the Network Vision project.

- The Company expects to spend a total of approximately $115 million on capital expenditures to implement 4G LTE services in its PCS service area in conjunction with Sprint Nextel's Network Vision project, including $30 million spent during 2012 and $85 million remaining to be spent in 2013, in addition to on-going capital spending to support capacity needs on the wireless network.

Nothing to groundbreaking but good numbers overall for the company and it's good to see that they are adding subscribers.

Hopefully on the earnings call tomorrow (3/1) there is some good Q&A from the analysts related to their 4G buildout.

I also can't wait for them to finish building out their coverage in central PA. It's night and day when I travel from Harrisburg to Philadelphia (though it is improving noticeably in pockets in and around the Philly market).

Shentel highlights from their earnings release:

- As of December 31, 2012, the Company had upgraded 200 of its 516 cell sites to 4G LTE, covering 55% of our covered PCS POPs

-The Company expects that capital spending will remain elevated, particularly during the first half of 2013, as the Company works to complete cell site upgrades as part of the Network Vision project.

- The Company expects to spend a total of approximately $115 million on capital expenditures to implement 4G LTE services in its PCS service area in conjunction with Sprint Nextel's Network Vision project, including $30 million spent during 2012 and $85 million remaining to be spent in 2013, in addition to on-going capital spending to support capacity needs on the wireless network.

Nothing to groundbreaking but good numbers overall for the company and it's good to see that they are adding subscribers.

Hopefully on the earnings call tomorrow (3/1) there is some good Q&A from the analysts related to their 4G buildout.

I also can't wait for them to finish building out their coverage in central PA. It's night and day when I travel from Harrisburg to Philadelphia (though it is improving noticeably in pockets in and around the Philly market).

Thanks for posting that info. I read through the press release and slide deck and didn't see much information relevant to their 4G rollout listed. Though it was interesting to see the number of towers on their network has expanded nicely, but I wonder how many will get LTE (and in what bands).

For all of those in the Shentel and nTelos coverage areas tomorrow (2/28) both companies will be releasing their 4th quarter earnings results and probably along with it some info about their 4G build-outs. If anyone wants to tag team the calls and update this thread with any notable news that would be helpful. I'll try and join the Shentel call, but I make no promises. The links are as follows:

nTelos webcast: (http://services.choruscall.com/links/ntls130228.html) 11:00 am EST

Shentel webcast: (http://investor.shentel.com/) 10:00 am EST

Originally when I was searching for a solution for the lack of native Sprint coverage in McConnelsville, OH (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McConnelsville,_Ohio) where I stay and preferred not to roam on Verizon I obtained an Airave to resolve the issue and would take it with me every time I would stay with family in the area. Sprint customer support granted me an Airave at no extra charge but could not guarantee that it would work there. Sure enough I plugged it in McConnelsville, OH the next time I was in town and after a GPS lock I was granted service. At the time, when I was researching if it would actually work where there was no native Sprint coverage I couldn't find any definitive information from any of the forums that I searched. I never came across the 35 mile radius information, mentioned in an earlier post, anywhere but according to maps on this site McConnelsville, OH is just within 35 miles from the nearest tower. Your mileage may vary with the device, but it worked for me in an area that is not covered by any Sprint towers.

I hope that information helps anyone with questions regarding the device.

I've been having difficulties with 3G and LTE in the Hershey, PA area. Just a week ago I was pulling down great LTE coverage at work, better so than in weeks past, but this week I haven't been able to connect to LTE at all and 3G has been sluggish. I also have a tri-hotspot and it reverts to Wimax now because the signal on LTE has been poor.

Chambersburg, PA LTE Report ---

Was at the new Longhorn Steakhouse Saturday evening to see how the food would be. New steakhouse, I had to test it out.

The food was superior.

Laid my Galaxy S3 on the table with the speaker off and it vibrated on an incoming e-mail.

When the screen lit up, I had CDMA 1X bars all over the place. I had a 4G indicator too. Yes, Chambersburg is covered with LTE.

The steakhouse is brand new, well built, probably a little tough to penetrate with a cell signal. Not real close to a cell site either.

But I had to keep asking for more napkins to clean up the LTE flowing out of the phone. LTE can be a mess when it gets into your basket of bread on the table.

When my wife was not watching, I ran a speed test. 8 meg download and 7.2 meg upload. It was steady too. How can you not sneak a speed test when you encounter something like this??

 

Check out Sensorly.com

Chambersburg city is well covered and the LTE is moving out into the rural areas too. It just keeps getting better. Multiple cell sites are converted to the new Network Vision product in Chambersburg with more improvements coming in the area.

Glad you are experiencing LTE for the first time. Chambersburg has been lit up with LTE for a few months now, and as you noted Shentel has been expanding into "more rural" markets in their service area with their NV updates. Have you picked up any new towers or areas that have not been mapped on Sensorly? If not it would be great if you mapped the new areas and reported the towers to Robert.

I know this isn't exactly new information, but I was reviewing the slides from their recent presentation at the J.P. Morgan

SMid Cap Conference on 11/29/2012. The slides can be found here (http://ir.ntelos.com/Cache/1500044742.PDF?D=&O=PDF&IID=4110676&Y=&T=&FID=1500044742)

nTelos stats that I found interesting based on their CapEx estimates for the 4G upgrade:

Total cell sites: 1,396

Total estimated cost: $60-$65 million

I'm still digging through Shentel's website for comparison of capital expenditures related to network vision deployment, however I'm having no such luck right now even though I know I have seen the information before.

Some highlights from the deck are noted below:

• Deployment Plan

• Launch first LTE markets in 2H 2013

• Complete initial build-out by year-end

2014; 70% of covered POPs

• Devices supporting Band Classes 2,

4 and 25

• Estimated CapEx of approximately

$60mm to $65mm

I believe there is a new tower, not sure where in Hershey, that has been upgraded to LTE. Signal started around Cocoa Avenue heading south and stayed with me until the intersection of Rt 743 and Homestead Rd. There was not LTE signal on this stretch of road last week which leads me to believe that an additional tower has been upgraded.

Sorry I'm in iPhone guy otherwise I would map it on my commute.

Anyone in the area feel like putting some more points on Sensorly?

Just noticed that someone mapped some new LTE in Hershey, PA in the past day. Early Christmas present for me. I would do some of my own on the way to work through there, but sadly I'm on of "those guys" with an iPhone.

Looks like the new areas you discovered were mapped correctly in Sensorly.

Am I on the only one who checks on a daily basis and react like a kid on Christmas morning when I see new areas mapped on Sensorly?

I don't believe they mentioned the cities that they wanted to launch before Thanksgiving, but I believe they mentioned wanting to launch Harrisburg, Hershey, and York before year-end. The transcript should be posted online in a day or two if you want to verify.

Just a thought that popped into my head while listening to the call, but would anyone be interested in putting together a few questions (1-3) for the next quarterly/year-end call? Having listened to many of there quarterly results calls it usually is the same 3-4 analysts that participate, but I feel there questions while focused financially really miss some of the technical elements that also have financial impact and would be relevant to readers of this site.

Just an idea I had, as there is little chance anyone would get to propose a question on the Sprint earnings call.

Plenty of time to plan if anyone is interested.

Shentel has there 3rd quarter call today, but the preliminary release looks good from a financial perspective They are building out there area very quickly and bringing the towers online as tracked on Sensorly.

The link for the call today @ 10:00 am EST can be found here (http://investor.shen...?EventID=119646)

The pre-release can be found here (http://investor.shen...eleaseID=718192)

Some quick highlights from the release that I liked:

"The Company expects that capital spending will increase significantly during the fourth quarter as the Company accelerates the pace of upgrading cell sites as part of the Network Vision project."

"The Company expects to spend a total of approximately $115 million on capital expenditures to implement 4G LTE services in its PCS service area in conjunction with Sprint Nextel's Network Vision project, $55 million during 2012 and $60 million in 2013, in addition to on-going capital spending to support capacity needs on the wireless network."

For a company of Shentel's size those are big numbers, but also show there level of commitment to NV where they stand to realize their biggest gain from their agreement with Sprint.

I saw this posted last week on nTelos's investor relations pre-release, and thought it was interesting. Hopefully they will provide more detail in the conference call about their plan, but according to the few sentences in the release they are looking for a second half of 2013 release of LTE.

http://ir.ntelos.com/Cache/1001169397.PDF?D=&O=PDF&IID=4110676&Y=&T=&FID=1001169397

Scroll down to the "Operational Update" section.