CTIA roundtable: Sprint, Verizon, and AT&T talk data and argue over T-Mobile

This morning, the heads of all three major carriers joined Jim Cramer of CNBC for a live roundtable on the state of the wireless industry and, of course, the purchase of T-Mobile by AT&T.

News of AT&T’s purchase of T-Mobile is rippling through CTIA. Though the mood was generally light at today’s carrier forum, moderator Jim Cramer (Mad Money) didn’t hesitate to ask the heads of Sprint, AT&T Mobility, and Verizon Wireless some tough questions about the costs of wireless access, the wireless spectrum, and the impact the purchase of T-Mobile will have on innovation in the U.S. market.
Noticeably, T-Mobile was absent from the carrier lineup. When asked about the purchase of T-Mobile, AT&T Mobility’s Ralph de la Vega was pretty brief, but defended the carrier’s $39 billion decision, saying that the added wireless spectrum that T-Mobile owns as well as the new customers and added infrastructure will help AT&T bring 4G services to the market quicker. In a witty retort, Sprint’s Dan Hesse said “wait, I thought you and T-Mobile already had 4G,” commenting on the claim T-Mobile and AT&T have been making that their HSPA+ networks are actually 4G. Hesse was not shy about his discomfort with the deal, reiterating claims that it basically gives Verizon and AT&T an 80 percent market share and hurts the competitive growth of the industry in the long run. Verizon’s Dan Gaul was mostly neutral on the matter, saying that Verizon is monitoring the situation closely, but doesn’t necessarily think it is a bad or good thing. Verizon believes it is in a very competitive position.
Toward the end of the discussion, Cramer asked the carriers whether a series of companies were friends or foes. AT&T claimed that Facebook and Twitter are both a friend to it and Verizon’s Gaul believes Netflix is a friend, but has no interest in owning content companies. Finally, Hesse (Sprint) said that he hopes the Nokia/Microsoft Windows Phone partnership is successful because a fourth operating system would make for a healthier operating system market. Overall, throughout the morning Hesse painted himself as the most reasonable and likable CEO of the bunch, getting quite a few laughs and cheers from the crowd. Speaking about metered usage, Hesse said Sprint will stick with its unlimited plans for now: “…if you look at broadband at home, it’s not metered. We look at tonnage and usage immensely. We try to focus around simplicity and value. Consumers will pay a premium for simplicity,” said the CEO.
Other topics discussed included the tragic events in Japan, the need for more wireless spectrum, the growth of video, Jim Cramer’s children, and the iPhone launch on Verizon (AT&T has “no comment” on how it impacted sales).

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Verizon has no plans to buy Sprint, says CEO

Despite being pushed to No. 2 because of the planned AT&T/T-Mobile merger, Verizon says it does not need to purchase Sprint to stay competitive.

Verizon Wireless has no intention of buying Sprint Nextel, says its chief executive, Daniel Mead. This in light of the fact that Mead’s company may soon drop down to the number two largest wireless company in the US, if AT&T’s recently announced plan to purchase T-Mobile for $39 billion is approved by federal regulators.
During an interview with Reuters on Monday, Mead said that Verizon, currently the most profitable wireless carrier in the US, found no reason to purchase Sprint.
“We’re not interested in Sprint. We don’t need them,” Mead told Reuters just before the 2011 CTIA wireless industry conference in Orlando, Florida, which takes place this week.
Mead also indicated that Verizon would not oppose AT&T’s T-Mobile purchase, and added that he believes the deal will be approved by the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Trade Commission, if the companies agreed to the regulators’ conditions.
“Anything can go through if you make enough concessions,” Mead said.
The fate of Sprint has become one of the most significant question marks left hanging in the musty air after news of the AT&T/T-Mobile union went public on Sunday.
Sprint has come out firmly against the AT&T/T-Mobile merger, saying it would “result in a wireless industry dominated overwhelmingly by two vertically-integrated companies that control almost 80 percent of the US wireless post-paid market.”
Some believe Sprint could have difficulty competing against Verizon and the new AT&T/T-Mobile juggernaut if not purchased by a larger entity that could provide support to the dwarfed cellular carrier.
Another possible option is that Sprint, which was originally slated to purchase T-Mobile before presumably being out-bid by AT&T, could begin to buy up smaller, budget competitors like Metro PCS or Leap.
Regardless, it’s clear the AT&T/T-Mobile deal has sparked a feeding frenzy in the wireless industry. It remains vague, however, who’s predator and who’s prey.
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