Carriers

Wall Street prepares for flat year-over-year growth from Apple

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

If Wall Street was caught flat-footed by Apple's lower earnings back in April, analysts are preparing for more bad news for the third quarter. Apple is expected to announce lower quarterly revenue and sales, prompting one expert to slice thirteen percent off his previous forecast for the third quarter. Although a $5.4 billion reduction in expectations might seem dramatic, it is actually rosier than a review of what Apple may announce July 24...

T-Mobile to ‘upgrade upgrades’ with new Jump unlimited upgrade plan

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 12, 2018

T-Mobile is holding a media event later today at 2:30PM Eastern / 11:30AM Pacific to announce "our boldest moves yet." A leaked memo suggests the Deutsche Telekom-owned telco is readying a new unlimited upgrade plan for smartphones. "We've upgraded upgrades," the memo reads. Called Jump, the idea is to allow customers to upgrade when they actually want to instead of waiting the usual two-years until their contract expires. I've included more tidbits after the break...

AT&T to host event on July 16 to discuss ‘what’s next in wireless’

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 14, 2018

AT&T, the second largest wireless provider in the United States by customer base, started sending out invitations yesterday to several major media outlets for a mysterious media event it's going to be hosting on July 16.

Other than the cryptic message "Get ready for what's next in wireless," the invites don't really offer up any details on what the event could be about. But given that AT&T is a carrier, it's not hard to speculate on the matter...

Sprint completes Clearwire deal

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 9, 2013

After acquiring a controlling stake in the U.S. mobile and fixed wireless broadband communications services provider Clearwire in October 2012, wireless carrier Sprint the following month announced it would buy out the minority of Clearwire shareholders for $2.2 billion. Sprint, the nation's third-largest telco, this morning has officially confirmed the completion of the transaction, meaning it now has a 100 percent ownership stake in the Bellevue, Washington-headquartered Clearwire...

Apple closes gap with Android in May, thanks to T-Mobile

Ed Sutherland ∙ July 8, 2013

Apple may want to thank its newest U.S. carrier partner, T-Mobile USA, for helping narrow the gap between iOS and Google's leading Android smartphone software. According to a newly-released market survey, Android had 52 percent of the domestic market in May 2013 while Apple scored 41.9 percent, a 3.5 percent gain over the same end of May period in 2012.

The figures are slightly encouraging to Apple, which held 39 percent of the U.S. smartphone market according to another research firm in June. Remarkable about today's numbers is how the iPhone accounted for more than half of T-Mobile smartphone sales, enticing a higher-than-average percent of feature phone owners to upgrade to the Apple handset...

Japan’s NTT DoCoMo not getting iPhone over Apple’s volume and carrier crapware stance

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 26, 2016

Japan's top wireless carrier NTT DoCoMo still doesn't carry the iPhone, a decision its executive Katzuto Tsubouhi defended in an interview with the Wall Street Journal by arguing that Apple's device is no longer "the god of all smartphones."

For DoCoMo, Google's Android software provides more opportunities to customize the experience by preloading the handsets with a flurry of the carrier's many services and applications, something Apple strictly prohibits.

But holding out on the iPhone has come at a price as NTT DoCoMo since the iPhone's inception lost 3.2 million users of its 60 million subscribers to rival telcos who sell the iconic smartphone. In pointing the finger of blame at Apple the carrier told Reuters that the California firm wouldn't let it put its logo on the device and preload its lifestyle apps...

iOS apparently grabbed nearly 75 percent of mobile ad market in May

Ed Sutherland ∙ Updated May 3, 2017

As we've noted in the past, Apple has the unique ability to have products outnumbered by Android, yet excel in areas which count - like advertising. The latest case in point is a study finding nearly 75 percent of mobile ads are served to Apple's iDevices.

By contrast, Android's share of the mobile ad market is decreasing with Samsung's Galaxy S smartphones delivering barely any ad impressions, according to figures released by a mobile ad company...

AT&T deploys 4G LTE in 30 new markets

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 27, 2016

Since its last expansion which enabled its fourth-generation Long-Term Evolution (LTE) speedy cellular radio technology in several new markets, U.S. wireless carrier has been pretty quiet.

The following day rival Verizon took the initiative by announcing its LTE was available in 500+ markets across 49 U.S. states and covering nearly 200 more markets than AT&T.

Stepping up its game, AT&T today announced expansion of its LTE which is now available in more than two dozen additional markets. If you live in any of the areas listed below the fold, you should start experiencing enhanced speeds on your LTE-enabled devices...

Best Buy and Walmart now offer prepaid iPhone 5 on T-Mobile

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 3, 2017

In an apparent move to clear stock ahead of a next-generation model introduction, U.S. retailers Best Buy and Walmart have been running interesting promotions for some time now, offering deep discounts on iPhone sales and attractive device trade-ins.

As for the iPhone 5, both companies have long offered Apple's flagship handset with a two-year contract with U.S. carriers AT&T, Verizon and Sprint. And this past weekend, each has added a prepaid iPhone 5 option on T-Mobile to its roster...

Radio Shack to start offering Virgin Mobile iPhone 5 tomorrow

Cody Lee ∙ June 27, 2013

We've been hearing for a while now that the iPhone 5, Apple's flagship handset, was on its way to popular Prepaid carrier Virgin Mobile. Last week a report claimed that the device would launch this Friday, and today comes further confirmation of that.

9to5Mac is reporting that it has learned from a reliable source that retail giant Radio Shack will begin offering Virgin Mobile-flavored iPhone 5 models tomorrow. They'll come in both black and white, and start at $499 with the trade-in of a compatible device...

Verizon’s LTE in 500 markets, VoLTE due in 2014

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 28, 2017

Just as U.S. wireless carrier AT&T yesterday said it rolled out its Long-Term Evolution (LTE) radio technology to new markets while expanding coverage in several existing markets, rival Verizon Wireless Thursday said its LTE now blankets five hundred markets nationwide.

The Big Red carrier now has 4G coverage in nearly 200 more markets than AT&T does. Verizon added a hundred new LTE markets in just eight months and was the first U.S. telco to start deploying high-speed LTE cellular technology two and half years ago. The company also announced it will begin rolling out Voice over LTE (VoLTE) technology starting next year...

AT&T promotion makes 16GB iPhone 5 just $99 with contract

Cody Lee ∙ June 22, 2013

It appears that retailers are in full-on inventory clearance mode with the iPhone 5, in anticipation of a new model. Best Buy is currently taking $50 off the handset, Walmart is offering the device at a $70 discount, and it looks like AT&T wants in on the fun too.

This morning, the country's second largest carrier started a promotion that takes 50% off its entire smartphone lineup. Yes, that even includes the iPhone 5, which means that you can score an entry-level model of the popular handset for just $99 with contract...