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When AT&T officially announced their acquisition of T-Mobile USA (pending regulation approval), I had a couple immediate thoughts: (1) This was bad news for consumers, (2) This was good news for Deutsch Telekom, (3) Verizon would try to buy Sprint, (4) Depending on the last item, none of it may actually get approved.
It looks like I may have been wrong as Verizon Wireless CEO Daniel Mead claimed they don’t care about size and instead are only interested in being the most profitable carrier. Not only did he claim a buyout of Sprint would distract them from this goal but he also had some pretty pointed words about Sprint in general:
“We’re not interested in Sprint. We don’t need them,” said Mead, speaking to Reuters ahead of the CTIA Wireless Conference.
Don’t write off a Verizon purchase of Sprint quite yet – it’s all about semantics. Verizon Wireless doesn’t need Sprint, I agree, but if the AT&T and T-Mobile deal goes through, Sprint could very well need Verizon. If Sprint were to struggle and come at a bargain, that lack of interest could be renewed and not “needing” them would change from a pride-filled dismissal to a profitable endeavor.
[Via Reuters]
Of course, Verizon could buy Metro PCS, Leap Wireless (Cricket) and U.S. Cellular and gain a lot of subcribers minus the mess a Sprint buyout would no doubt bring.
agree. the ball is at sprint now.
I don’t think sprint needs verizon either. Especially if sprint sticks to the only REAL UNLIMITED plan in the US.
Sprint is the only good reasoned carrier now. Perhaps U.S. Cellular too.
Metro PCS and Cricket are not potential verizon customers. They are on MetroPCS and Cricket because they do not want to spend the kind of money that verizon charges. That would be a terrible merger. US Cellular, on the other hand, would more easily integrate.
I would think that Sprint and US Cellular would be a more likely possibility though.
man, i REALLY hope verizon sticks to that sentiment. i like sprint how it is right now.
I used to be a Sprint hater (back when it was terribad). Now its actually pretty decent, and I’m enjoying my services with the Evo. I’m fine with leaving it be or getting absorbed into Verizon. Verizon has a nice network (ESP LTE), but it comes at a cost premium.
Of course they won’t… Verizon will buy the forced divestiture AWS spectrum where it’s redundant from AT&T-Mobile in the west. Sprint already has nationwide AWS. Sprint has nationwide 800. Verizon has nationwide 700, AT&T has nationwide 700… and both Verizon and AT&T can now have nationwide AWS as well. That’s as close to a level playing field as the US has ever had if it plays out that way. The only reason why people are getting ancy about what Verizon will do subscriber numbers. A meaningless number. Each customer T-Mo has is not worth 1 billion dollars each… it’s the spectrum they own that’s worth money.
The ATT/Tmob merger may go through. I have to believe that a Sprint/Verizon merger would never gain approval. This is especially true if blue and pink join forces.
How many of the T-Mobile customers does AT&T need to jump over Verizon to be the biggest US carrier? I’m guessing there will be a mass exodus as people like me bail and go to either Sprint or Verizon. It would be bitter irony if T-Mobile users went to Verizon and kept them in the top spot as a result. Won’t be me, I’m looking at Sprint’s unlimited plans as my next option. Will miss my G2 though, hopefully something awesome will be released this week for Sprint.
Trust me there would be no use for verizon in sprints eyes. I am not for this merger but one thing is for sure if this merger gets approved it makes sprint much better in the long run because they will be the only carrier LEFT STANDING THAT WOULD CATER TO AFFORDABLE PRICING AS WELL AS MID LEVEL HANDSETS. Everyone knows tmobile put android on the map and tmobile has great affordable plans which would be gone if at&t purchases tmobile. Most of the current tmobile customers would flock to sprint because they have supported android just as tmobile has. Google will not allow at&t to disrupt the forward progress of there platform. Everyone knows at&t doesn’t support android regardless of there recent pickup of handsets none of that actually matters. Google/Sprint has started to develop a very close relationship and because of that you see the adoption of Google voice integrated handsets only on sprint which is an exclusive. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the next Google experience phone appear on sprint simply because tmobile use to always have the google experience devices…ie… G1, Nexus one, then the Nexus S. Google-Htc-Sprint= HARMONY.
Today is the day the Htc Evo3d is born at CTIA THE HOME OF EVO.. Last thing sprint would ever need is Verizon… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlkT7gRM0xo&feature=youtube_gdata_player
I have been a Sprint customer for some time and have a degree of brand loyalty but I don’t see how Sprint survives (in the long term) if this deal goes through.
The main thing Sprint has going for it right now is the unlimited data at a reasonable price.
If the deal goes through, Sprint will be the only carrier without an iPhone. One option for Sprint (they don’t have many)is to become “all things Android.”
But, if this deal goes through, we all lose….
Richard stfu, sprint has two phones. Sprint has really done nothing for android. Tmobile verizon are the 2 that brought android to the forefront.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlkT7gRM0xo&feature=youtube_gdata_player
I totally agree with Richard, I am a tmobile customer and just cuz of this merger I am switching to sprint after this billing cycle. I will try to sell/ barter my Android running hTC phone on Craigslist for some decent sprint issued phone. And I hope a lot of t-mobile customers would do the same.
Maybe I should post some verizon commercials. The ones stating they have the largest,most advanced netwoek in america. Go ahead, stick with your budget carrier. The one with spotty, slow coverage.
Things to consider:
1. Sprint’s 4G WiMax network is banking on Clear, which is already failing and Sprint is readying themselves to move to LTE.
2. Verizon and now AT&T/T-Mobile have the majority of the spectrum. AT&T has an absurd share now but it isn’t implemented yet and Verizon has a good chunk of the LTE spectrum.
Ultimately if anti-trust laws do not prevail (which they won’t) the merger will happen and Sprint’s stock will drop drastically. Either Sprint will drop to a smaller status or suffice being bought and merged with VZW.
I’m not plugging. I’ve found that gazelle to be a great place to sell my phones and an ipad, etc.. if you have a newer phone they’ll cut a check. they may even do paypal. i can’t rem.
i’m just saying: check out all your options. ebay and craig’s list are not the only way to sell things.
A lot of the Alltel people in my area that were forced to switch to AT&T have now come over to Verizon. I expect more of the same.
just like they didn’t “need” the iphone a couple of years back. verizon has a problem with shooting its mouth off.
rem how google was looking at purchasing the wireless freqs a few years ago?
I know tmo has been the pure google experience until now. we all know at&t wont continue that. what if google bought sprint?
google is already doing all of sprint’s voicemail, and now you can call sprint phone as google voice numbers.
tmo being bought is a bad thing for everyone except att execs, but this would keep Sprint competitive.
I agree with Richard too. When I switched to Sprint from Tmobile last year the move made me a little nervous, but have been really happy that I did. Now with this merger A few friends and family on Tmobile are not happy with the idea of going to Att and in some cases back to Att. There are 4 of them that have already said they are going to Sprint in the next few months. I really don’t see Verizon getting many customers out of the people who choose to jump ship, mainly because most people are on Tmobile because of plan price and data price, both of which are similar on Sprint.
Look guys the deal haven’t went through yet, nor do we know if it’s even going through. I don’t feel good at all about this whole ordeal. I’m personally piss off at t-mobile right now. It just doesn’t sit right with me. Its Like saying microsoft Xbox buying out sony for the ps3 Or vice versa. One thing about a true tech head is our loyalty. Something these fuck head carriers forgotten about!
Brothers and sisters, the Sprint Evo revival is underway leave the evil clutches of At&t and the fallen temple of T-mo. Rise up and shout hallelujah Sprint is saved. Now cellular chior lets us sing a chorus of we shall not merge/be moved.
Well i am a tmobile Customer and i cant wait to jump ship to Verizon and many of the people i know who have tmobile are looking straight at verizon when their contracts are up, AT&T and Sprint ruin everything and dont care about their customers (^.^)
Couple of things…
#1. Sprint doesn’t ‘need’ Verizon either.
#2. Just a thought but if the AT&T/T-Mobile AKA “two ugly duckings jumpoff” deal is allowed to go forward….then it could well prompt Sprint and US Cellular to get together. -shoulder shrug- Ehh…
Ditto!! ===> RT @AJ I agree with Richard too. When I switched to Sprint from Tmobile last year….I have been really happy that I did.
Sprint doesn’t need Verizon. We’re perfectly fine wothiut them. Better handset lineups, better prices, we’re good
so most of you will bail before the merger goes through out of spite, because it is popular to hate on AT&T , I did the opposite of what you are planing, i left sprint for AT&T and have been happier- while unlimited data is great it isn’t when your speeds are slower than 1Mbps, I get 3 Mpbs now on AT&T and have seen up to 3.92 Mpbs
Lets hope verizon keeps its greedy paws off sprint cause I really don’t want these pigs raping my wallet with their overpriced services….
Take it from this former T-Mobile user…I switched to Sprint last year and I have NOT looked back. I have not had a single dropped call. And official Sprint stores (at least in the Richmond, Virginia area) are manned like Apple stores with bright, knowledgeable and competent young Men and Women.
With T-Mobile I’d get dropped calls, complete downtime (one time I could not get a single signal for two hours on the 15th floor, downtown Richmond, Virginia) and the T-Mobile stores were manned by hmmm how do I say… “progressive” types. -grin-
T-Mobile is wack. I am sure many people like them…but that is because they’re wack too. :)
Alltel didn’t “need” Verizon, but they got them anyway.
@ Richard Yarrell
I agree with most of what you’re saying except that T-Mobile put Android on the map. T-Mobile bravely debuted Android but the platform was a footnote on a market dominated by Apple and RIM until Verizon launched the Motorola Droid in November of 2009. The launch of that phone and their continued advertising – and “DROID” branding – gave the platform marketing legs and really made it a competitor in the smartphone market.
Sprint kinda rode the coattails of Verizon with their Android launches in the months that followed.
Check out a YouTube video, global Android Activations Visualized or something to that effect, and watch closely for when the calendar says “November 2009” – the map explodes from the launch of the Motorola Droid. In fact, keep watching – all of Verizon’s major phone releases cause the biggest impact in activations. April ’10 for the Droid Incredible, June ’10 for the Droid X, July ’10 for the Droid 2, etc.
tl,dr; T-Mobile may have debuted the Android platform but Verizon is responsible for its success.
@18 – actually, Verizon has the “absurd” amount of 700 mhz spectrum, which is what I’m assuming you’re referring to as “the” LTE spectrum. Nevermind the other international plans to do it on 800 mhz or the garbage 2.5 ghz spectrum… or the entire worlds plan to use AWS for it. Verizon and AT&T have equal AWS spectrum, VZW east of the mississippi river, att west of it. T-Mo has nationwide AWS, Sprint has AWS everywhere but Montana and North Dakota. Sprint has nationwide 800 mhz. A 3-way competition on LTE would be healthier than 4, since AT&T would be forced to sell their redundant western AWS spectrum to Verizon. And no, anti-trust laws do not apply… there’s nothing uncompetitive about it as it enhances competition, and it’s already a regulated market where the spectrum is a leased public utility…
Im just trolling along to say Richard yarrel is one of the most android knowledgeable people on here, a few others too.
T-Mobile put Android on the map for any knowledgeable person. Verizon put Droid on the map wit their great ads. Facts are facts u damn fanboys.
GREAT just what the US needs…… more mega cartels which act like monopolies. We should do it more like Europe and ban these ridiculous contracts. We should not be permitting mergers. The market as it is, is not a functioning market in the phone industry. We need more competition, not less.
I wish Verizon would be more competitive with US Cellular when it comes to providing better coverage to lots of areas in the Mid West where US Cellular is currently whipping Verizon’s ass.
At the end of the day, it’s about coverage. If you pretty much hang around metro areas where coverage for all the carriers is usually good, then you can think about price. But for those of us in the wild, wild west where coverage can spotty or non-existent while traveling in the mountains, then you are stuck with Verizon. I would so love to be able to have a real choice. Maybe the AT&T/T-Mobile merger will give me one.
The tmobile buyout will never approved. I may have just been a kid but I remember MA BELL all to well. The young adults that were acually paying the bills back then are your politicians today. I dont think they forgot either.
IMHO, Sprint dropped the ball on this whole thing. They should have been the front runner in the bid to buy TMo. Combining the #3 and #4 would have made them a true competitor. Problem was, they would have to swap over ALL of TMo’s customers to a CDMA phone, would have been a big problem and a lot more expensive. SO maybe it was just a pipe dream…Sprint needs something…and maybe Google will save them!
Google should buy Sprint!
All in All, I don’t think anyone wants any buyouts to be happening. I for one am happy with the WiMax 4G that Sprint supplies. I’m also happy with my “True” Unlimited plan, my coverage and the availability of my network. I live in the South Central of the US and I have coverage where AT&***T can’t even get on to their 3G Network. T-Mobile is pretty decent in respect of where they use to be and Verizon still falls short to Sprint in my location. So a buyout, I’d jump ship and pick up a local carrier. AT&***T is just trying to get a better network, faster and less costly. Recently logged as the worst carrier in the nation (AT&***T), of course it’s easier to buyout a company who has been coming up on the up and up. As for Verizon stating they “don’t need” Sprint, good. They can keep their pricing and caps. I’ll stick to my great network and Android Powered HTC EVO 4G. Which is better than the “NEW” EVO… er… Thunderbolt that Verizon just picked up. and to all of those who are saying the Google should buy Sprint, that’s not that bad of an idea.
I’d seriously consider going to a smaller, regional carrier if Sprint were acquired by Verizon. I’ve been with Sprint for 13 years and the service has never been better, the pricing is best in market and handset options have dramatically improved. Plus, I don’t have to use Microsoft Bing on my Google device!! Verizon has overpriced plans and I doubt such an acquisition would get approval particularly if AT&T/T-Mobile goes through. It’s starting to look a lot like the telecom monopolies of the 1980s all over again.
Look for the relationship between Google and Sprint to become even stronger now. Perfect example the google voice integration of all sprint smartphones this is exclusive to only sprint no other carriers have this. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the next Google experience phone appear on sprint either late this year or early next year. Google/Sprint/Htc will allow android to be kicked to the side because everyone knows at&t is not in support of android regardless of the devices they sell. Sprint is the only affordable carrier left when tmobile becomes invaded by ass t&t
@holxm156… Great video Android activations.. You are right verizon did well by android to. Guess verizon gets a bad rap cause of Motorola.
If it wasn’t for Verizon, the most powerful android phone available today would be the mytouch.
I think Richard…you would cry a river or kill yourself if Verizon ever bought Sprint…lol. I think Verizon should do something/buy some comp, if the Deal between ATT And T moble goes through.
I am on t-mobile, and a year or two down the road I will have to make that choice. Get absorbed into at &t or go to Verizon.
I am a T-mo customer(about 8 years), I/we have three iphone 3gs using edge ($15.00 per month) and free wi-fi when available. With this new ATT deal, that will all come to a end and we former T-mo’s will get hosed. I/we are very upset and I/we would love to have a ‘legal’ iphone (i5), however, ATT says that wont happen till next spring (litigation issues). If Sprint can snag the iphone for this summer or fall with a competitive rate, we will jump to Sprint. This is a ‘danger and opportunity’ situation for Sprint; get the iphone(5) and set up a lower rate plan and we will come flocking.
Fact. Verizon > Sprint. Get over it. I like having coverage everywhere.
Screw AT&T, T-mobile, Verizon, Sprint and all the rest of the louts holding down us consumers and doing unnameable things to our derrieres while they pilfer from our wallets. I’ve got one word for all of them…
Lightsquared.
Can’t see Verizon wanting to buy Sprint while Sprint is still under contract with Ericsson for four more years to manage their network. The plus side would be all the spectrum opening up after Sprint shuts down its Iden network though.
Fact- verizon overpriced. I dont like getting raped so Ivan can buy another yacht. Get over it!
A deal with Sprint would definitely get better phone deals (like ATT got the iPhone first) and more attention. Now that ATT is much larger, Verizon will need to consider buying Sprint, but it doesn’t want to seem desperate, hence the “I don’t need Sprint” remark. This will also reduce the stock value of Sprint, resulting in a better deal for Verizon.
I’ll be honest, considering the direct integration of Google Voice on Sprint’s network as well as the release of some impressive new phones (HTC Evo3D, Nexus S 4G) I wouldn’t be amazed if we see Google aim to acquire Sprint to establish it’s own mobile network if the AT&T-Mo merger goes down.
With Verizon and AT&T having strong market share between networks with the iPhail 4, Google and Sprint, to preserve their interests and the interests of the open-handset alliance could really shake the ground.
(I like my network, but dammit, Verizon needs some better phones than what’s coming out.)
So people are going to jump ship from the cheapest national carrier (T-Mobile) to the most expensive one (Verizon)? LOL
Honestly, T-Mobile customers will go to Sprint when they actually look at the prices.
Verizons gonna buy Sprint. I can see it lol, but seriously…i completely agree with the statement about Sprint needing Verizon. I hope they do, I have Verizon and I soooo want the Evo lol!
Get a Thunderbolt. Faster, better chip architecture, if you live in an LTE area, there is literally no comparison between WiMax and LTE; WiMax doesn’t even come close to LTE speeds. I have both phones (I got an awesome deal on an almost-new EVO – $100 awhile back and I use the EVO as a dev phone) and I can honestly tell you that a Thunderbolt is NOT just an EVO with an LTE radio. Believe me, if it turned out that the TBolt sucked, I would’ve returned it and would be complaining right now.
They might reconsider when they look at the actual service. Sprint is AWFUL. I left them this month because of their poor service. As many bad marks as AT&T gets in comparison to Verizon, I’m shocked how Sprint seems to get a pass here. It SUCKS
LOL the DOJ would shoot that merger down from the shitter, and they’re more lenient than the EU when it comes to Google.
The what? … I don’t know anyone that owns that phone. NOT ONE PERSON. T-Mobile has a strong presence here in Milwaukee, and I know more people with Samsung and HTC-based Android phones on Sprint and AT&T than on Verizon.
better ideas come from a shit stain