T-Mobile USA, lacking the spectrum of GSM rival AT&T, has been late to the high-speed wireless party, notes C/Net today. That’s why it partnered with Starbuck on WiFi. That’s why it spent $4.2 billion on new spectrum in 2006 — on the Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) band (1.7/2.1 GHz)
T-Mobile has nationwide AWS coverage with a whopping 30 MHz of AWS spectrum in New York, Chicago, Phoenix, LA, and Seattle. T-Mobile will begin offering high speed AWS wireless service this summer, says C/Net.
The service, expected to launch this summer, will be up and running in 80 percent of the top 20 markets by the end of the year, according to Joe Sims, vice president and general manager of broadband products and services for T-Mobile USA.
But when Wi-Fi is combined with a new 3G wireless network using phones that T-Mobile claims switch seamlessly between the two networks, it becomes an interesting story.
The combination of its 3G network and Wi-Fi strategy could help the company compete more aggressively as mobile Internet and data become more important sources of revenue for wireless operators.
Leap Wireless, the parent company of Cricket Communications, a leading provider of prepaid cellular services, announced their first Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) spectrum operation, in Oklahoma City. It will include approximately 1.1 million new covered POPs, bringing Cricket’s national covered POPs to approximately 55.1 million.
| Bidders | Net total of high bids |
| 1. T-Mobile | $4.2 billion |
| 2. Verizon Wireless | $2.8 billion |
| 3. SpectrumCo | $2.4 billion |
| 4. MetroPCS | $1.4 billion |
| 5. Cingular | $1.3 billion |
| 6. Cricket | $710 million |
| 7. Denali Spectrum | $365 million |
| 8. Barat Wireless | $127 million |
| 9. AWS Wireless | $116 million |
| 10. Atlantic Wireless | $81 million |
| Click here to find out who is backing these bidders. | |
Cricket’s network consisting of 98 cell sites will be fully operational at launch covering the sprawling Oklahoma City area including the cities of Norman, Guthrie and Shawnee and linking with the existing Tulsa market to create one large Oklahoma calling area.
Related DailyWireless AWS stories include; Cricket Launches AWS Service, Canadian AWS Auction: Encouraging Competition, Nortel & LG: LTE on AWS, AWS Auction: It’s Done!, The AWS & 700MHz Dance, Satellite AWS DropOut, Plan B from Wireless DBS, FCC Sued over AWS Auction, and AWS Auction: Does it Suck?.
