Dish won't launch its LTE Advanced network until 2016 - or later

Dish Network said that it will not be able to launch its proposed LTE Advanced network using 40 MHz of S-Band spectrum until 2016 or later. This is about 12 months longer than the FCC's current proposed buildout schedule, which requires Dish to launch its network in three years covering 30 percent of the U.S. population. However, Dish has indicated that when it does launch its network, it will cover 60 percent of the U.S. population.

In a filing to the FCC, Dish provided details of its deployment plans. The company said that it will take at least 48 months from the time the 3rd Generation Partnership Project finalizes the S-Band specifications for LTE Advanced for Dish to launch its network. The 3GPP is not expected to finalize those specs until December, which means that Dish will not launch its network until at least December 2016 or later.

The FCC, which approved Dish's acquisition of S-Band satellite spectrum, has so far denied the company's request for a waiver to allow it to build a terrestrial wireless network. Instead, the agency has initiated a rule-making process that covers the topic. Initial comments on the proceeding were due May 17, replies are due June 1 and the agency would rule sometime after that.

Dish is arguing that the FCC's buildout requirements are not feasible and are not in line with similar requirements for terrestrial services. For example, Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ) and AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T) have 10 years to cover 75 percent of the population using the 700 MHz spectrum licenses they won at auction.

In its filing, Dish said it needs 48 months after the LTE Advanced specifications are finalized to obtain network infrastructure equipment, chipsets and devices. The company also will have to upgrade its customer service and billing systems to support the new services as well as develop systems to meet regulatory requirements such as E911. In addition, the company will have to construct its backhaul network, deploy cell sites, and trial its service before launching.

Earlier this month, during Dish's quarterly earnings call, Dish Chairman Charlie Ergen noted that Dish is willing to partner with other wireless companies to launch its proposed LTE Advanced network. "We're talking to everybody out there that has some piece of the wireless business that we think can help us either as a vendor or a partner or a customer, whether that be in the chipsets, the handsets, the towers and so forth and so on," he said.

For more:
- see this Reuters article
- see this FCC filing (PDF)

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Analysts: FCC's rulemaking favors Dish's LTE network plans
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Dish won't face LightSquared's GPS issues, but spectrum's fate still uncertain

Verizon: We offered MetroPCS LTE roaming agreement

Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ) said it offered MetroPCS (NYSE:PCS) an LTE roaming agreement in February, but that MetroPCS did not respond to the offer. Verizon said MetroPCS is stalling on the issue in hopes that the FCC will step in and mandate better roaming terms.

Verizon made the assertion in its latest filing with the FCC. The filing is part of the agency's ongoing investigation into Verizon's proposed purchase of AWS spectrum from cable companies including Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Cox Communications.

MetroPCS, in one of its previous filings with the FCC on the subject of Verizon's AWS spectrum purchase, implied that Verizon was unwilling to offer a roaming agreement. Verizon said that was incorrect.

"MetroPCS and Verizon Wireless have been engaged in roaming discussions, and they exchanged rate proposals last November," Verizon wrote in its FCC filing. "Verizon Wireless also offered to extend the negotiations, which had previously focused on voice and EV-DO data roaming, to include discussions toward an LTE roaming agreement. In February, Verizon Wireless sent MetroPCS a revised offer and attempted to contact MetroPCS to continue negotiations, but until this week MetroPCS had not responded. It appears that MetroPCS has decided to try to wring conditions out of the regulatory process rather than negotiate commercial arrangements."

A MetroPCS spokesperson provided this statement from the company in response to questions from FierceWireless: "MetroPCS is continually in talks with existing and potential partners with regards to CDMA and LTE roaming agreements."

A roaming agreement between Verizon and MetroPCS would be a first for the industry; so far, no carrier has announced a public roaming deal for LTE (except for those carriers working in Verizon's rural licensing program). Moreover, MetroPCS' LTE network works primarily on its AWS spectrum whereas Verizon's network works mainly on its 700 MHz spectrum. Thus, an LTE roaming agreement between the two companies would be contingent on devices that could support both spectrum bands.

The filing by Verizon is the carrier's latest attempt to convince regulators to approve its AWS spectrum purchases. In December, Verizon agreed to pay $3.6 billion for the nationwide AWS spectrum licenses held by SpectrumCo, a joint venture of cable companies Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks. Separately, Verizon said it will buy Cox Communication's 20 MHz of AWS spectrum covering 28 million POPs for $315 million. All of the deals include the option of Verizon reselling cable services and cable companies reselling Verizon service. The cable companies can also become MVNOs of Verizon.

A range of companies and public-interest groups are opposed to the deals, arguing they will stifle competition in the marketplace.

Despite the uproar, Verizon is "very, very confident" regulators will approve the plans, according to Verizon CFO Fran Shammo, who spoke this week at an investor conference.

The roaming dust-up between Verizon and MetroPCS isn't the first time major carriers have squabbled over the issue. Indeed, according to past FCC filings, AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T) and T-Mobile USA couldn't come to an agreement on HSPA roaming. That situation though was ironed out following AT&T's failure to acquire T-Mobile; AT&T agreed to a 3G UMTS roaming agreement with T-Mobile as part of its $6 billion breakup fee.

For more:
- see this Verizon FCC filing (PDF)

Related Articles:
FCC presses Verizon for details on proposed 700 MHz spectrum sale
T-Mobile, RCA join forces to stop Verizon's cable deals
AT&T, T-Mobile bicker over possible 3G data roaming agreement

T-Mobile tweaks prepaid mobile broadband pricing

T-Mobile USA revamped its prepaid mobile broadband plans by cutting prices slightly and also introducing new, higher data allotments. The nation's No. 4 carrier, which has banked on prepaid and mobile data to keep it afloat amid postpaid subscriber losses, said the new plans will go into effect May 20.

T-Mobile said its new prepaid mobile broadband plans are as follows:

• 300 MB per week for $15
• 1.5 GB per month for $25
• 3.5 GB per month for $35
• 5 GB per month for $50

Under T-Mobile's existing prepaid mobile broadband plans, the company charges $10 per week for 100 MB, $30 per month for 1 GB and $50 per month for 5 GB.

The new pricing scheme will apply to a number of T-Mobile devices, including the Samsung GalaxyTab 10.1, the Huawei-made T-Mobile Springboard tablet, the T-Mobile Sonic mobile hotspot and the HSPA+ 42-enabled Rocket 3.0 USB Laptop Stick.

T-Mobile lost 510,000 branded contract customers in the first quarter, a figure smaller than its losses in previous quarters. T-Mobile added 249,000 branded prepaid customers during the quarter and 262,000 M2M customers.

Currently, T-Mobile offers an HSPA+42 network covering 184 million POPs in 185 markets, and its HSPA+21 network covers around 220 million POPs. The company plans to launch LTE service in 2013.

For more:
- see this release

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T-Mobile's ads get aggressive with 'No More Mr. Nice Girl'
Study: AT&T, T-Mobile top network speed tests

LG intros Optimus LTE II; Boost gets visual voicemail from Smith Micro

Quick news from around the Web.

@FierceWireless: A Look at Android Fragmentation: The Good, The Bad and the Pretty Charts - Article by @inafried | Follow@FierceWireless

> Klausner Technologies inked patent-licensing deals for its visual voicemail technology with MetroPCS (release), Alcatel-Lucent (release) and others.

> Boost Mobile will use visual voicemail technology from Smith Micro. Release

> Clearwire will name its TD-LTE vendors in the third quarter. Article

> The FCC chose spectrum for wireless medical devices. Article

> U.S. Cellular launched a Samsung LTE mobile hotspot for $50. Release

> LG introduced the new Optimus LTE II. Article (sub. req.)

> Wireless carriers are boosting their networks for an upcoming NATO summit in Chicago. Article

> New legislation would prohibit tampering with registry information in cell phones. Article

> Samsung may not suffer if Apple is working to take its supply business elsewhere. Article

Mobile Content News

> Sprint Nextel now supports carrier billing in Google Play. Article

> Viacom has reached an agreement with Time Warner Cable enabling subscribers to view live content from cable networks like MTV and Comedy Central across mobile devices including Apple's iPad. Article

> Groupon pins its future on mobile. Editor's Corner

> Pinterest could be worth $1.5 billion. Article

Broadband Wireless News

> AT&T's Kris Rinne dishes on the carrier's plans for LTE Advanced, VoLTE and the idea of infrastructure sharing. Hot Seat

> NewNet Communications Technologies is bullish about the WiMAX business that it acquired earlier this year from Nokia Siemens Networks and appears committed to making a stand for the technology. Article

> In a positive vote for Wi-Fi offloading, 84 percent of survey respondents who have Wi-Fi connectivity at home are proactively connecting their smartphones to it. Article

European Wireless News

> The continuing growth in mobile data could place operators under extreme financial pressure unless they implement ways to provide bandwidth in a more cost-efficient way, according to a new study from Solon Management Consulting. Article

> Telefónica's O2 UK awarded Huawei a five-year deal to plan and manage the operator's mobile core network. Article

> SFR is planning radical action to counter the success of Iliad's Free Mobile after losing 620,000 customers in its first-quarter. Article

And finally... Microsoft posts letter from user who switched from the iPhone to Windows Phone. Post

T-Mobile clarifies restructuring plans, will cut only 350 jobs

T-Mobile USA gave a little more clarity to its latest restructuring plans, explaining that it plans to cut a net 350 jobs instead of the 900 it had previously reported.

While the nation's No. 4 carrier is still cutting 900 positions across the company, it also said late Wednesday it would add 550 additional jobs in 2012 "to support the needs of the business and strategic opportunities." The figures bring the carrier's net loss down to 350 employees.

"The majority of the new positions will be located in the Puget Sound area," the company said in a blog post. "These 550 new positions are in addition to the 1,000 new B2B sales representatives T-Mobile plans to hire in the coming years as we aggressively pursue that opportunity."

The carrier said employees who are affected by the restructuring are encouraged to apply for openings that suit their qualifications. The job cuts do not affect technicians in engineering, customer service representatives in T-Mobile's 17 remaining call centers, or front-line retail employees in corporate-owned T-Mobile stores.

T-Mobile announced a net loss of 1,900 jobs in March to consolidate the number of its call centers around the country from 24 down to 17. At the time, the carrier also said it would restructure other parts of its business by the end of May.

Parent company Deutsche Telekom plans to spend up to $4 billion upgrading T-Mobile's network. Speaking at the 40th Annual J.P. Morgan Global Technology, Media and Telecom Conference earlier this week, Deutsche Telekom CFO Timotheus Höttges said T-Mobile USA would be able to stand on its own as it transitions to LTE next year, and would not need to partner or merge with another carrier. However, he also noted that the carrier plans to cut $900 million in costs, though he did not give a specific timeframe for the cuts. He said T-Mobile might reinvest some of that money into the business.

For more:
- see this T-Mobile post

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DT CFO: T-Mobile USA can stand alone
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T-Mobile takes aim at AT&T's iPhone in new ad campaign
T-Mobile: Prepaid 'has doubled over the past year'

Clearwire to announce LTE vendors in Q3 timeframe

Clearwire (NASDAQ:CLWR) CEO and President Erik Prusch said the carrier would announce its TD-LTE equipment suppliers sometime in the second half of this year, likely in the third quarter.

Prusch

Clearwire has said it will light up on 5,000 TD-LTE base stations by June 2013. Then, according to Prusch, Clearwire will increase that number to 8,000 "sometime thereafter." The buildout will occur mainly in dense urban areas in top markets where Clearwire already offers WiMAX service (New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and Seattle are the markets Clearwire has named for LTE). Clearwire's current WiMAX network covers 120 million POPs and comprises around 16,000 towers.

It's unclear which vendors will supply network equipment to Clearwire, but Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) is likely a lead candidate. Clearwire outsourced its network operations to Ericsson in May 2011, following Sprint Nextel's (NYSE:S) lead. Sprint inked a $5 billion, seven-year outsourcing deal with Ericsson in July 2009. Ericsson has also supplied LTE to virtually all of the nation's major carriers.

Clearwire has also said it would engage in vendor financing in order to fund its LTE buildout. Prusch said Clearwire likely would announce its vendor financing details when it announces its LTE equipment suppliers.

Speaking Wednesday at the 40th Annual J.P. Morgan Global Technology, Media and Telecom Conference, Prusch said Clearwire's LTE deployment is a much more "intricate process" than its WiMAX buildout. He said the carrier is carefully selecting which of its existing WiMAX sites will be upgraded to LTE, in consultation with wholesale customer Sprint, in order for Clearwire to maximize its return on investment. Prusch said that, in many cases, workers would only need to swap out a card and install a software upgrade to add LTE to Clearwire's cell sites, rather than installing a completely new antenna.

"That is all going as planned," Prusch said of Clearwire's LTE buildout.

For more:
- listen to this webcast

Related Articles:
Clearwire: Our LTE Advanced network will be able to hit 168 Mbps
Clearwire to launch 5K TD-LTE hotspots in 31 markets by June 2013
Clearwire to outsource WiMAX network to Ericsson
Sprint inks $5B network outsourcing deal with Ericsson

Verizon will kill 'grandfathered' unlimited data plans, push users to data share

Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ) plans to eliminate the $30 per month unlimited data plan that it still provides to 3G customers who were "grandfathered" into the plan because they were data customers prior to the company's switch to tiered data pricing last July. Speaking at the 40th Annual J.P. Morgan Technology, Media and Telecom conference, Verizon Communications CFO Fran Shammo said that as these 3G unlimited data plan customers migrate to 4G LTE, they will have to purchase the company's data-share plan (which Verizon plans to launch in mid-summer) and move off the $30 per month unlimited data plan. "Everyone will be on data share," Shammo said.

Shammo

Verizon's data share plan is scheduled to launch in mid-summer but no pricing details have been announced. Shammo said that he believes this new plan will make it easier for families and small businesses to connect multiple devices. The industry, Shammo said, has constrained the market around connected devices because people think they need an additional data plan. "If I can add as many devices as I want, that is more efficient from a family perspective and a small business perspective," he said.

However, Shammo said that with the launch of this new data share plan, the industry will have to change a key metric--average revenue per user. Shammo said that Verizon will move to a "revenue per account" metric that will more accurately measure the company's business.

When asked how Verizon will drive customers to this new data share plan, Shammo said that LTE will be the anchor for the new plan and that as customers upgrade from 3G to LTE, they will have to be on a data share plan, allowing the company to sunset its unlimited 3G data plan. "So as you come through an upgrade cycle and you upgrade in the future, you will have to go onto the data share plan," Shammo said, according to a transcript of his remarks. "And moving away from, if you will, the unlimited world and moving everybody into a tiered structure data share-type plan."

"So when you think about our 3G base, a lot of our 3G base is unlimited," he added. "As they start to migrate into 4G, they will have to come off of unlimited and go into the data share plan. And that is beneficial for us for many reasons, obviously."

Verizon later issued a statement clarifying Shammo's remarks, as there was some confusion about when the unlimited data plan would sunset. Specifically, the company said that customers with unlimited plans will get to keep their unlimited plans. However, when shared data plans become available, the unlimited option will no longer be available to customers when they buy a new device at a subsidized price, which usually happens with a two-year service contract.

In an unrelated note, Shammo also said that the company will launch Voice over LTE technology at year end, but will not push the technology until mid-2013 when it has a bigger LTE footprint. In fact, Shammo noted that by the end of 2013 Verizon's LTE footprint will be equal to or even bigger than its existing 3G footprint.

For more:
- see this webcast
- see this Verizon transcript
- see this New York Times article

Related Articles:
Verizon to launch family data plan by mid-year
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Verizon's McAdam: Family data plans coming in 2012

This article was updated May 17 to include the statement from Verizon providing more details about what happens to unlimited data plans when consumers upgrade their devices.

Analyst: Mobile data growth could double infrastructure costs within 5 years

The continuing growth in mobile data could place operators under extreme financial pressure unless they implement ways to provide bandwidth in a more cost-efficient way, according to a new study from Solon Management Consulting.

The research firm expects data traffic to increase 15-fold between 2011 and 2016 for Germany alone, which could see operator costs doubling for access and backhaul networks.

Mobile operators need to act now to meet the mobile cost challenge, according to Stephan Kalleder, principal at Solon and author of the study. Without adequate countermeasures, "network capacity requirements would almost double network Opex from 12 per cent of revenues in 2011 to 23 per cent of revenues in 2016," Kalleder wrote.

The consultancy recommends that operators need to adopt two approaches so as to reduce the danger of cost outstripping data revenues: network optimisation and network sharing.

Solon claims that accelerating the migration to LTE will provide strong benefit from additional spectrum allocation and higher spectral efficiency. Additionally, operators can benefit from actively managing network data traffic by implementing different tariff and policy models or by offloading mobile traffic to Wi-Fi or fixed lines. The company also believes that a focus on optimising video delivery--which is likely to be around 70 per cent of anticipated traffic growth over the next five years--will help limit costs.

Negotiating network sharing deals is also proving to be a highly successful strategy especially for smaller to mid-size operators, clams Solon. "By sharing the same infrastructure--from base stations to backhaul, mobile operators can save between 25 to 35 per cent of the cost of the shared site," Kalleder wrote.

Even further cost saving potential can be realised from extending access sharing to the core network, and setting up a joint network company would allow operators to take full advantage of integration. If operators adopt these infrastructure improvements, Solon believes that mobile operators will be able to increase transmission efficiency significantly and partly contain network operating expenses growth.

However, without optimisation, Solon says that operator EBITDA margins could decrease by 11 percentage points. The proposed network optimisation measures will help to limit margin risk to 5 per cent, and if the operator also enters into a network sharing agreement for its UMTS and LTE sites, network cost could almost be maintained at today's levels.

For more:
- see this release
- see this Solon Management Consulting white paper

Related Articles:
Analysys Mason: With LTE, operators are cautious about data consumption
Salanave: The (lack of) LTE impetus in Europe
Mallinson: Vodafone's C&WW deal shows that fixed-mobile convergence is increasing
Report: Microwave backhaul issues could significantly delay small cell deployment

Nokia unveils low-cost handsets to regain share in emerging markets

Nokia is attempting its rebuild its market share in developing markets with the announcement of two new dual-SIM handsets. The low-cost devices will ship with a licence to download 40 games by Electronic Arts and offer Internet access using a new browser from Novarra, which Nokia acquired in 2010.

Nokia 110

The new Nokia 110 model will sell for €35 with delivery during the second quarter, while the Nokia 112 model will cost €38 and become available in the third quarter. Both handset are based upon Nokia's Series 40 software.

"Today's mobile phone users want a quick Internet experience that allows them to discover great content and share it with their friends--but without being held back by high data costs," Mary McDowell, Nokia's executive vice president of mobile phones, said in a statement.

The need for the company to take urgent action to stop any further decline in developing markets came after Nokia revealed that unit sales of its low-end handsets had plunged 16 per cent in the first quarter of 2012.

Commenting on the new handsets, Geoff Blaber, analyst at CCS Insight, told Reuters: "These products are critical for Nokia to maintain traction in the face of mounting competition from Samsung and the Chinese rivals. Nokia's Series 40 platform is under attack from all sides. Full touch support is a must if Nokia is to fend off the challenge from aggressively priced Android devices."

Nokia began introducing dual-SIM devices for emerging markets in the second quarter of 2011. Since then, the company has introduced its Asha sub-brand to appeal to consumers, especially young ones, in emerging markets.

For more:
- see this Nokia statement
- see this Reuters article
- see this Dow Jones Newswires article

Related Articles:
Is Nokia going down like the Titanic?
Nokia chairman confident of 2012 turnaround amid downgrades
Nokia wobbles as brokers turn against struggling vendor
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Nokia's Q1 sales plunge as company posts $1.2B loss
Nokia: Lumia 900 sold out online but we're making more

LG intros new UI for Android; T-Mobile launches B2B service plans

Quick news from around the Web.

@FierceWireless: What was the biggest winner at the #CTIA Wireless 2012 show? Poll #ctiaw12 #ctia12 | Follow@FierceWireless

> LG announced a new Android user interface for its Optimus phones. Article

> Hewlett-Packard said it sold its AppSystem for the SAP HANA database and related services to T-Mobile USA. Article

> T-Mobile USA's new Small Business Productivity Plan goes for $99.98 per month and includes unlimited data, talk and text plus overage-free 5 GB Mobile Broadband service with a two-year agreement. Release

> Apple defended Siri's performance in a class-action lawsuit. Article

> Gartner said worldwide mobile phone sales declined 2 percent in the first quarter of 2012. Release

> According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple could release an iPhone with a larger screen. Article (sub. req.)

> Sprint Nextel shareholders voted to re-elect Dan Hesse. Article

> Sprint reportedly plans to further tighten its upgrade policy. Post (reg. req.)

> China Mobile is in talks with Apple for the iPhone. Article

> Virgin Atlantic rolled out an in-flight cell phone service. Article

Mobile Content News

> A month after acquiring photo-sharing application Instagram for $1 billion, Facebook has scooped up the similar Lightbox. Article

> U.S. smartphone owners now average 41 applications per device, up 28 percent from the 2011 average of 32 apps, according to new data from Nielsen. Article

> Mobile social gaming powerhouse Zynga is committed to acquiring new talent and startups, a key company executive said, indicating Zynga will continue its buying streak. Article

And finally... According to a new survey, nearly half of all iPhone users would buy an Apple iTV. Release

FCC presses Verizon for details on proposed 700 MHz spectrum sale

The FCC pressed Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ) for more details on its proposed sale of Lower 700 MHz A and B Block spectrum, which Verizon has said is contingent on the carrier getting regulatory approval to buy more attractive nationwide AWS spectrum from cable companies.

In a letter to John Scott, Verizon Wireless' general counsel, Rick Kaplan, the chief of the FCC's wireless bureau, asked pointed questions about why Verizon has now chosen to potentially give up the 700 MHz spectrum it spent billions of dollars on in 2008. In the letter, Kaplan noted that Verizon's Lower A and B Block spectrum covers around 175 million POPs, but that as of January 2012 Verizon had not deployed the spectrum (Verizon's existing LTE network, using 700 MHz Upper C Block spectrum, covers two-thirds of the U.S population).

Kaplan noted that Verizon's Lower A and B Block licenses have buildout requirements that mandate coverage to 35 percent of the licensed geographic areas by mid-2013. "What steps to date, if any, has Verizon Wireless taken to deploy mobile services using the Lower 700 MHz A of B block licenses (either or both)?" Kaplan asked. "On what timetable has Verizon Wireless been planning to deploy mobile service in these Lower 700 MHz blocks?" Kaplan also asked for Verizon's assessment of the challenges of deploying Lower 700 MHz A Block spectrum.

Additionally, Kaplan asked Verizon about the relevance of the sale of the Lower A and B Block spectrum to the FCC's review of Verizon's planned $3.9 billion purchase of AWS spectrum from cable companies. Kaplan also asked Verizon what steps it took to sell the Lower A and B Block spectrum before announcing its plans last month to do so, and if Verizon will abandon plans to sell the spectrum if the FCC does not approve Verizon's purchase of all of the AWS spectrum licenses.

Verizon declined to comment on the letter, according to multiple reports.

In December, Verizon agreed to pay $3.6 billion for the nationwide AWS spectrum licenses held by SpectrumCo, a joint venture of cable companies Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks. Separately, Verizon said it will buy Cox Communication's 20 MHz of AWS spectrum covering 28 million POPs for $315 million. All of the deals include the option of Verizon reselling cable services and cable companies reselling Verizon service. The cable companies can also become MVNOs of Verizon.

For more:
- see this FCC letter (PDF)
- see this Reuters article
- see this GigaOM article
- see this Bloomberg article

Related Articles:
T-Mobile, RCA join forces to stop Verizon's cable deals
U.S. Cellular interested in buying Verizon's 700 MHz spectrum
T-Mobile's Ray: We're not interested in Verizon's 700 MHz spectrum
Analysis: AT&T, MetroPCS might purchase Verizon's 700 MHz spectrum
Verizon: We'll sell 700 MHz spectrum to get cable companies' AWS spectrum

AT&T, U.S. Cellular buying 700 MHz licenses for LTE

In separate transactions, AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T) and U.S. Cellular are looking to purchase 700 MHz licenses, mainly from Cox Communications. Terms of the deals were not disclosed.

Pending FCC approval, AT&T is hoping to buy eight Lower 700 MHz B Block licenses from Cox covering areas on the East Coast, including cities in Florida and Virginia. Cox paid around $28 million for the licenses during the FCC's 700 MHz spectrum auction in 2008. An AT&T spokesman declined to say how much the carrier paid for the spectrum.

"The entire industry is focused in ensuring there is enough spectrum to meet surging customer demand for mobile Internet users," wrote AT&T spokesman Steven Schwadron in an email to FierceWireless. "AT&T's purchase of the 700 MHz licenses will support our continued deployment of 4G LTE services and is consistent with our strategy to pursue additional spectrum to support a great mobile Internet and voice experience for our customers."

Separately, U.S. Cellular purchased four Lower 700 MHz A Block licenses from Cox covering mainly locations in Kansas. Cox paid around $30 million for the licenses during the FCC's 2008 auction.

"USCC plans to use the acquired spectrum to develop its ‘fourth generation' LTE facilities," U.S. Cellular said in its FCC filing. A U.S. Cellular representative declined to answer further questions on the topic.

Finally, in another separate transaction, AT&T purchased four Lower 700 MHz C Block licenses from Peoples Telephone Cooperative covering locations mainly in Texas. AT&T said it would use the spectrum for its LTE services.

The spectrum transactions, taken together, reflect a number of notable trends in the U.S. wireless industry. First, they represent AT&T and U.S. Cellular's continuing spectrum needs. Both carriers are building out LTE networks and both have said they will need additional radio waves to meet demand.

Indeed, U.S. Cellular has said it would be interested in purchasing the 700 MHz Lower A and B Block spectrum Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ) has said it would sell if the FCC approves its purchase of spectrum from cable companies. (In December, Verizon agreed to pay $3.6 billion for the nationwide AWS spectrum licenses held by SpectrumCo, a joint venture of cable companies Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks. That transaction is still awaiting FCC approval.)

Second, the spectrum deals represent the further withdrawal of Cox from the wireless market. The company purchased AWS and 700 MHz spectrum licenses covering much of its wired footprint and had begun constructing a wireless network, but ultimately gave up that effort and has been selling off its spectrum licenses since. In December, Verizon said it would buy Cox's 20 MHz of AWS spectrum covering 28 million POPs for $315 million. 

For more:
- see these two AT&T-Cox FCC filings (PDF)
- see this U.S. Cellular-Cox filing (PDF)
- see these two AT&T-Peoples filings (PDF)

Related Articles:
U.S. Cellular interested in buying Verizon's 700 MHz spectrum
Analysis: AT&T, MetroPCS might purchase Verizon's 700 MHz spectrum
Cox abandons wireless service

Article updated May 16 with comments from AT&T.

SFR plans to fight subscriber declines with low-cost offers

SFR is planning radical action to counter the success of Iliad's Free Mobile after losing 620,000 customers in its first-quarter. SFR, the second largest operator in France, is looking to regain market share by launching new low-cost services.

While Vivendi, SFR's parent company, reported better than expected first-quarter profits at €823 million--compared to a €765 million net profit estimated by a poll of analyst conducted by Bloomberg--the company said that the ongoing price war within the mobile sector will drag profits down in the coming quarters. This outlook has prompted SFR to rush out two new services aimed at regaining the initiative in the low-cost sector.

Frank Cadoret, SFR's marketing director, told Reuters that the company will launch its new low-cost "Buzz Mobile" service in early June targeted at people who want cheap international calls. The exec also confirmed that SFR willadd a budget mobile broadband offer to its existing cut-price "Red" offering to better compete with Free Mobile.

"Our low-cost Red offers have signed up 200,000 customers so far and today we think this low-cost segment accounts for some 16 per cent of customers overall," Cadoret told Reuters. "But it is only going to get bigger from here and could reach up to 30 per cent or more. So SFR will have to be very active in the low-cost market. We're going to take steps in terms of distribution and branding."

But these plans for new and revamped services have been overshadowed by reports that SFR is planning to slash operating expenses by €450 million this year through job loses--rumoured to be around 500--together with cuts to marketing budgets and call centres, according to Bloomberg.

The Financial Times reported that Vivendi would be making "drastic and structural changes" at SFR and implementing "significant cost-cutting programmes."

Cadoret also opened the door to Orange and Bouygues Telecom by suggesting SFR was willing to sign network sharing deals with its rivals to reduce the cost of deploying LTE. "We are open to anything that allows us to bring costs down," Cadoret told Reuters, adding that no specific talks had yet begun.

Separately, Thomas Reynaud, the CFO of Free Mobile parent Iliad, told the Wall Street Journal that its mobile customer base is still growing at a "sustainable rhythm," adding that Free Mobile has a medium-to-long-term goal of winning 15 per cent to 25 per cent of the mobile market. Free Mobile attracted 2.6 million customers in less than months, around 3.8 per cent of the total French mobile market.

"Don't believe this is the end of the story of Free Mobile," Reynaud said. "This is just the beginning."

For more:
- see this Bloomberg article
- see this Reuters article
- see this Financial Times article (reg. req.)
- see this Wall Street Journal article (sub.req.)

Related Articles:
Report: SFR faces cost cuts of €450M
Vivendi takes knife to SFR projects, plans new strategy
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SFR may slash up to 500 jobs to compensate for Free Mobile's impact on earnings
Arcep: French operators could cut 10,000 jobs due to rising competition
Free Mobile's network suffers from overload at evening peak times

Majority of mobile game developers struggle to make money

Mobile game developers are competing in one of the most difficult of all mobile application markets. Although the mobile game market is full of promise, it does not offer financial success to the vast majority of developers. The market is also entering a period of change, which will intensify competition. Mobile games are played by 101 million people in the United States, according to a recent study by Newzoo. Worldwide, the revenues are substantial. Juniper Research recently projected that the global mobile games market will be worth $18.3 billion by 2016. While some companies such as Rovio and Zynga have struck it rich, that type of success is the exception rather than the rule, as most game developers struggle to make meaningful revenues. Special Report

LG Optimus Elite lands at Virgin Mobile; Voyager Mobile launch delayed

Quick news from around the Web.

@FierceWireless: @inafried FYI, it looks like Voyager Mobile is postponing its launch. Release --PG | Follow@FierceWireless

> Time Warner Cable is reportedly eliminating its Roadrunner brand. Article

> Cricket provider Leap Wireless is adding 6 million more songs to its Muve Music service. Article

> Nokia introduced two new low-end phones, the Nokia 110 and the Nokia 112. Article

> A Samsung executive said the company landed "huge" orders for flexible OLED screens. Article

> Verizon Wireless will expand LTE coverage to 28 more markets on May 17. Release

> Voyager Mobile is the nation's latest low-cost MVNO, and was founded by a 22-year-old college student. Article

> According to new figures, Android smartphones commanded a global market share of 59 percent and an installed base of 331 million devices. Release 

> Best Buy's founder and chairman said he will resign. Article (sub. req.)

> Research In Motion let slip its BlackBerry 10 home screen. Article

> Cassidian, an EADS company, and Alcatel-Lucent said they will launch a new solution called Evercor, based on 4G LTE technology, for the public safety, energy and transport industries. Release

> The LG Optimus Elite will arrive at Virgin Mobile today. Release

Mobile Content News

> Gameloft is predicting increasing revenues in its second quarter. Article

> Apple reportedly is planning to upgrade to iCloud by including photo-sharing features. Article (sub. req.)

> Facebook is revamping its News Feed for mobile devices, rolling out a redesign featuring larger photos and easier-to-read posts. Article

> American Express introduced My Offers, a mobile deals platform that recommends and ranks merchant offers based on a consumer's spending history and location. Article

> Millennial Media reported net losses of $4 million in the first quarter of 2012. Article

> More than 70 percent of mobile users pay little to nothing for mobile apps. Article

Mobile Developer News

> Android 4.0 development standards help designers embrace the platform. Industry Voices

> A new study from comScore identified the top apps accessed by iOS and Android customers and found that the two audiences have very dissimilar usage characteristics. Article

And finally... Nokia said Apple rigged Siri to name the iPhone as the world's best smartphone. Article

Study: Tablets generate triple the data traffic of smartphones

Mobile operators may want to carefully monitor the number of tablet users they have using their wireless network. According to a new study from video optimization firm Bytemobile, tablet users drive three times more mobile data traffic than smartphone users. According to the study, Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPad users browse 33 Web pages per session, generating about 160 percent more mobile Web usage per session than iPhone users.

The Bytemobile report noted that operators might want to watch this trend, particularly as adoption of tablets by both consumers and enterprises accelerates. Forrester Research estimates one-third of U.S adults will own a tablet by 2016. Of course, not all those tablets will necessarily be connected to the cellular network. 

The Bytemobile report also provided some interesting insights into consumer mobile video usage. The report found that YouTube is the most frequently visited source for mobile video and YouTube sessions are longer than other video sessions. For example a YouTube session typically lasts for 8.5 minutes while a Vevo session lasts just over eight minutes.  

The company also found that slower networks result in lower resolution video. On average a mobile network with a bit rate of 300 Kbps delivers 74 percent of requested videos at 240p resolution. Anna Yong, product marketing manager of Bytemobile's Mobile Analytics, said that this stat is important because it shows that consumers on slower speed networks will get lower quality video, which may indicate need for carriers to consider optimization or caching technologies to help improve quality.

Bytemobile compiles its analytics report quarterly from anonymous sources within the company's 3G and 4G wireless operator customer base.

For more:
- see this release

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