Monday
U.S. Cellular, Alltel Plan 18-State Walmart Prepaid Push
U.S. Cellular and Alltel Wireless plan to sell a co-branded prepaid service at Walmart stores in 18 states beginning in May.
The tie-up could help postpaid-centric U.S. Cellular gain a larger presence in the no-contract market.
"Teaming with Alltel to gain distribution in Walmart gives us another opportunity to be where our customers want to shop," Carter Elenz, U.S. Cellular executive vice president of sales and customer service, said in today's announcement.
The U Prepaid service will run on U.S. Cellular's network or Alltel's network depending on customers' location. The companies did not list states slated for U Prepaid or provide exact launch dates.
Four phones from Samsung and LG will be offered with U Prepaid at launch, including the Samsung Repp, Samsung Chrono, LG Saber and LG Attune/Exchange.
The companies did not disclose specific pricing plans for the service, but said the plans would be "nationwide with no roaming charges" and would include multiple data options and plans that include unlimited talk and texting.
U Prepaid will compete at Walmart with a number of other prepaid offerings, including Tracfone's StraightTalk, AT&T's GoPhone, Cricket and T-Mobile USA.
Amazon Shares on Fire as Tablet Hogs Android Share
Amazon's $200 Kindle Fire tablet continues to torch the rest of the field, snagging 54.4 percent of the Android tablet market, according to a report today from comScore. Samsung's Galaxy Tab family came in a far second, with a 15.4 percent share of the Android market, down 19.1 percent sequentially.
The comScore report comes after Amazon yesterday reported a 30 percent drop in net income, which didn't seem to faze investors. Shares of the company shot up 15 percent in afterhours trading.
Amazon reported net income of $130 million, or 28 cents a share, down from $201 million, or 44 cents a share. While that's a drop for sure, it beat analyst expectations. Revenue was up 34 percent annually to $13.18 billion from $9.86 billion a year ago. Analysts on average were expecting Amazon to report earnings of 7 cents a share and revenue of $12.9 billion for the quarter.
Senior Vice President and CFO Thomas Szkutak said the company is pleased with the growth that the Kindle Fire is seeing, adding that customers are buying "a lot of content," particularly in North America.
"When you look at our North American media growth from Q4 to Q1, you're seeing that accelerate," Szkutak said, according to a transcript of the earnings call provided by Seeking Alpha.
Amazon saw global media sales grow 19 percent to $4.71 billion.
The company forecasted revenue for the second quarter between $11.9 billion and $13.3 billion or growth of between 20 percent and 34 percent.
Share of Amazon were up over 13 percent to $221.77 in early trading.
Verizon Resurrects T-Mobile Merger
T-Mobile USA's own words are being used against it by Verizon Wireless, which resurrected comments T-Mobile made during its failed merger with AT&T to defend its AWS spectrum purchase.
Verizon launched a 14-point attack against T-Mobile in an ex parte document filed with the FCC yesterday.
In it, Verizon points out that the various claims T-Mobile made to defend its merger with AT&T seem to contradict the reasons it is now giving the FCC for blocking Verizon's acquisition of nationwide AWS spectrum from four cable operators.
"T-Mobile cannot continue to have it both ways, and its attempts to extract competitive advantages during the transaction review process should be disregarded," Verizon said.
T-Mobile is one of the few operators to ask for an outright block of the transaction, claiming it will concentrate too much spectrum in the hands of a single company. It has not yet filed a rebuttal to Verizon's latest comments.
During the government’s review of its merger with AT&T, T-Mobile was forced to frequently defend the deal against accusations it would be detrimental to competition. But it has found itself on the other side of the fence after the merger failed, even joining the Rural Cellular Association, a vocal opponent to the AT&T buyout.
Verizon attempts to discredit T-Mobile's opposition to the AWS deal by detailing its change in course to the FCC.
It pointed out that T-Mobile testified during the AT&T transaction that the U.S. wireless industry would remain "fiercely competitive" if its merger with AT&T closed – a transaction that would have eliminated a major competitor – but later said that if Verizon was allowed to buy more AWS spectrum, there would be "serious harm to competition” and to consumer welfare.
"Despite its earlier claims that the combination of two top-four facilities-based providers would have no impact on competition in a fiercely competitive marketplace, T-Mobile now argues that the acquisition of a discrete block of spectrum – and only spectrum – by a carrier that needs it to meet its customers’ escalating demand for mobile services will 'serious[ly] harm' competition," Verizon said.
T-Mobile is not the only operator that has asked the FCC to stop the AWS deal from moving forward. MetroPCS is also on board, and Sprint has requested the agency "carefully review" the transaction, though it has stopped short of asking it be blocked.
Sprint, DirecTV and seven other groups asked the FCC this week to delay its review of the Verizon spectrum sale, claiming difficulties accessing important documents about the deal. The FCC has not said whether it will grant the request.
Sunday
Friday
Thursday
MetroPCS Leans on VoLTE After Dismal Q1
MetroPCS posted dismal first-quarter financial results today as fewer customers signed up for service and spiraling smartphone costs sent profits into a nosedive.
CEO Roger Linquist said the company "significantly underperformed expectations."
Bernstein Research analyst Craig Moffet had a more colorful take, calling the numbers "downright ugly." The market agreed, sending shares sliding about 9 percent in morning trading.
Profits declined 63 percent to $21 million on smartphone upgrade expense despite a slight uptick in overall sales, which rose 7 percent to $1.27 billion.
Net customer additions dropped 82 percent to just 131,654, from the 725,945 new subscribers it added last year.
The drop was blamed on later-than-expected tax refunds, competition in the prepaid market from larger operators and "end-users' desire for high-speed data."
MetroPCS has extremely limited spectrum holdings and has struggled to bring out phones and services on par with the competition. Its first LTE smartphone, the Brew-based Samsung Craft, was widely panned for poor performance.
MetroPCS is staking its rebound on voice-over-LTE smartphones set to make their debut in the third quarter.
Once enough customers move over to the service, MetroPCS will be able to refarm the spectrum it is currently using for its CDMA service to boost its LTE network.
"It is inextricably linked with our spectrum needs," Linquist said when asked how important VoLTE was to MetroPCS. "It is foundational to refarm CDMA spectrum."
MetroPCS said today it planned to have "at least two, maybe three devices this year," with additional VoLTE phones coming in 2013. Its first VoLTE device will be manufactured by Samsung.
The introduction of LTE smartphones in the sub-$150 range during the second half of this year will help move additional customers over to the service. MetroPCS is still working to expand its LTE network. It currently covers 80 percent of its total footprint and is expected to cover its entire CDMA footprint by the third quarter.
MetroPCS said it "came close to doubling" its LTE customer base during the first quarter. Subscribers using the new network have a churn rate "near 2 percent," lower than the 3.1 percent churn rate for its overall subscriber base.
The company has been pushing higher-end devices as a solution for its woes, but that strategy backfired in the first quarter after the company underestimated the impact of mail-in rebates and marketing.
MetroPCS told analysts to expect cost per gross addition of about $190, but today said that the number was actually $245.
ARPU inched up 14 cents to $40.56 as some customers switched to higher-priced smartphone plans. Nearly half of MetroPCS customers were on smartphone plans in the first quarter, it said.
Wednesday
Apple Stock Soars 10% on Q2 Performance
Apple stock gained back much of the 12 percent loss it suffered in the previous weeks’ nose dive, after the company reported Tuesday $39.2 billion in revenue and sales of 35.1 million iPhones in its fiscal second quarter of 2012.
Prior to the company’s earnings announcement, shares of Apple were trading at $560 but rose over 9 percent in after hours to $613.
Net income for the quarter came in at $11.6 billion, or $12.30 per share, up from $6 billion in the year-ago quarter. Apple typically sets expectations low and then overshoots them. Tuesday’s earnings were no exception. A consensus estimate from Reuters showed analysts were predicting $36.81 billion in revenue, or $10.04 per share.
Canaccord Genuity technology analyst Michael Walkley reiterated his “Buy” rating on the company and raised his price target to $775 from $740.
Walkley said in comments that iPhone sales could be slowing ahead of an impending iPhone 5 launch, but Canaccord still thinks that “very strong international iPhone sales position Apple for very strong sales of an LTE iPhone 5 in the December quarter and beyond to drive strong F2013 earnings growth.”
Sales of Apple products were beyond expectations across the board, including for the iPod, which has typically been considered the company’s weak spot.
While Apple stock slipped yesterday on worries about lower iPhone sales from AT&T and Verizon Wireless, additional carrier partners apparently made up for the shortfall. Apple sold 35.1 million iPhones during the quarter compared to 18.6 million in the previous March quarter.
On the iPad front, Apple sold 11.8 million iPads compared to 4.7 million in the year-ago quarter, an increase of 151 percent.
Sales of Mac desktops and portables hit 4 million, up 7 percent annually. Analyst firm IDC had expected 2 percent growth in PC sales.
Apple sold 7.7 million iPods compared to 9 million in the year-ago quarter but total iPod sales were ahead of the company’s expectations, and iPod touch continued to account for over half of all iPods sold.
Even the iTunes Store generated all-time record results with revenue of almost $1.9 billion, an increase of 35 percent annually.
Apple provided guidance of $34 billion in revenue for the next quarter, which compares to $28.6 billion in the June quarter last year.
High carrier subsidies and aggressive litigation have been on Apple’s list of challenges in recent months and Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, fielded questions on both issues in a Q&A during Tuesday’s earnings call.
On the subject of whether carriers would attempt to stretch the customer replacement cycle to decrease subsidies, Cook downplayed the actual subsidy amount. “From a carrier's perspective, I think it's important to remember that the subsidy is not large relative to the sum of the monthly payments across a 24-month contract period,” Cook said, adding that the difference between an iPhone subsidy and any other smartphone is relatively insignificant.
On the topic of patent litigation, which is near and dear to Apple’s heart as it is currently engaged in a number of legal battles over patents courts around the globe, Cook might have signaled the potential raising of a white flag.
“I've always hated litigation, and I continue to hate it,” Cook said. “We just want people to invent their own stuff. And so if we could get to some kind of arrangement where we could be assured that's the case and a fair settlement on the stuff that's occurred, I would highly prefer to settle versus battle,” he said.
Cook’s stance is a departure from his predecessor, the late Steve Jobs, who was quoted as saying he would spend his dying breath to destroy Android because he considered it a stolen product.
Apple’s legal battles are far from over. On Tuesday, a Chinese official said that the company Proview Technology does in fact hold the trademark on the iPad name in China. Also on Tuesday, the International Trade Commission (ITC) issued an initial ruling that Apple’s iPhone and iPad infringed on a 3G patent held by Motorola. A final decision on that case is expected after a review by mid-summer.
In early morning trading on Wednesday, shares of Apple were up almost 10 percent from yesterday’s close, to $615.
Sprint Sells 1.5 Million iPhones in Q1
The iPhone appears to be pulling its fair share at Sprint Nextel. Sprint sold 1.5 million iPhones in the first quarter of 2012, 44 percent of which were new customers.
And while the total number of customers on the Sprint platform grew almost 4 percent sequentially, including 263,000 postpaid net subscriber additions, 870,000 prepaid net subscriber additions and 785,000 wholesale and affiliate net subscriber additions, the company couldn’t manage to cut its losses altogether.
Net revenue was up 5 percent to $8.73 billion, from $8.31 billion in the year-ago quarter, but Sprint still managed a net loss of $836 million.
Sprint now counts 50.7 million total subscribers on its platform.
In a conference call, CEO Dan Hesse said Sprint is wrestling to find a good balance between increasing average revenue per user (ARPU) while not adversely affecting churn. The company reported best-ever retail postpaid ARPU of $62.55 on the Sprint platform, while postpaid churn on the Sprint brand settled in at 2 percent.
According to Hesse, fully 69 percent of Sprint customers own smartphones but not all of them pay an additional $10 per month data charge because they bought those phones prior to the company’s implementation of the charge. Hesse said it’s enforcing little things like the $10 data charge that might adversely affect churn, while simultaneously driving up ARPU.
Hesse said he expects Sprint postpaid churn will continue to improve, while the Nextel brand will see worsening churn, as the company proceeds to decommission its iDEN network. To date, Sprint has taken approximately 1,300 iDEN sites off air and expects to shut down a total of 9,600 before the end of the third quarter.
Sprint reaffirmed the goals of its Network Vision initiative, saying that to date, the company has approximately 600 sites on air, which are meeting speed and coverage enhancement targets. The company said it has zoning requirements completed for approximately 9,700 sites and leasing agreements have been completed for close to 7,700 sites. Sprint expects to bring approximately 12,000 sites on air by the end of 2012 and to complete the majority of its Network Vision rollout in 2013.
Hesse said the company is not adjusting its guidance on the progress of the Network Vision initiative, saying that while things are going well, there are still “a lot of moving parts.”
Sprint said it expects to launch 4G LTE in six major cities by the middle of 2012, including Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Atlanta, Kansas City and Baltimore. This week, Sprint launched its first two 4G LTE smartphones – the Galaxy Nexus and LG Viper 4G LTE – and earlier this month also announced the upcoming launch of HTC Evo 4G LTE.
All of this taken together left industry analyst Jeff Kagan underwhelmed, saying that Sprint has departed from the top tier of carriers.
“We have been watching the wireless industry grow and change over the years. It's time for a shift in the way we categorize the top competitors,” Kagan argued in commentary today, noting the extent to which AT&T Mobility and Verizon Wireless have pulled ahead of the pack.
Kagan said Sprint Nextel, which has long been considered a Tier 1, would be more adequately classified as a Tier 2 player. “If their performance improves, we can adjust back to the top three, but it has been years and they are still struggling,” Kagan said.
Shares of the company’s stock rose 6 percent immediately following the announcement but had retreated to nearly flat at $2.48 in early morning trading.
Before You Sell Your Android ...
Are you ready to sell your smartphone? Maybe upgrade to something nicer? Well, be careful about which phone you sell. The FOX 5 ATLANTA I-Team's Dana Fowle reports that not all smartphones are made alike.
A Blackberry, an Android phone and an iPhone -- one of these, according to a security expert, is not like the others. One of these he says no matter how you clean it has a big chance of going to its new owner with some of your private information on it.
AT&T Adds 4.3M iPhones, Outpacing Verizon
AT&T posted strong results yesterday as its iPhone activations outpaced those of competitor Verizon Wireless during the first three months of the year.
The operator activated 4.3 million iPhones, compared to the 3.2 million sold by Verizon. In all, AT&T sold 5.5 million smartphones.
"Strong smartphone sales drive data sales, and data drives this business," AT&T Mobility President and CEO Ralph de la Vega said during an earnings call today.
Mobile data is now a $24 billion annualized revenue stream for AT&T, he said. In the first quarter alone, AT&T posted data revenues of $6.1 billion.
The high cost of subsidizing smartphones often erodes operators' profit margins, but AT&T managed to dodge the financial impact of the high-end devices. Income for its wireless segment rose 11 percent to $4.37 billion on sales of $16.13 billion, and operating margin for its wireless business rose to 27 percent, from about 26 percent last year.
Overall, the company made $3.6 billion, or 60 cents per diluted share, on sales of $31.8 billion, beating analysts' estimates of 57 cents per share.
De la Vega said some of the margin improvement was due to cost-containment measures and the close of the Alltel-Centennial merger.
Profit margins could continue to improve in future quarters as the effect of new data plans, costlier upgrade fees and new upgrade policies put in place earlier this year begin to have an impact, he said.
About two-thirds of AT&T's smartphone subscribers have moved to more profitable tiered data plans. Costly device upgrades dropped to 7 percent during the first quarter from 9 percent last year.
Postpaid ARPU came in at $64.46 and postpaid churn dipped to 1.1 percent, its lowest level in seven quarters.
AT&T's overall customer additions dipped on an 82 percent drop in new connected devices, which de la Vega attributed in part Wi-Fi only tablets that don't access AT&T's cellular network.
AT&T added just 230,000 net new connected devices during the first quarter, from 1.27 million last year. Reseller net adds also slipped, falling 67 percent to 184,000.
However, net new postpaid customers tripled to 187,000 and prepaid subscriber growth rose 47 percent to 125,000. AT&T's subscriber base now stands at about 104 million, with about 41 million of those customers using smartphones.
De la Vega dismissed speculation that the wireless industry had no room to grow since nearly every U.S. resident already owns a cell phone.
"I think we're on the verge of a tipping point with the mobile Internet," he said. "From here on out, you can expect to see more increases of people accessing the Internet on their mobile devices."
Tuesday
Vodafone Group Buys Cable & Wireless for $1.7B
Vodafone has agreed to purchase Cable & Wireless Worldwide (CWW) for $1.7 billion.
In a press release, Vodafone said the acquisition will strengthen its enterprise business of Vodafone Group, while also providing network and other cost saving opportunities for the company.
John Barton, chairman of CWW, said that CWW had originally outlined a strategy to refocus its business on achieving sustainable cash generation and returns from capital invested but that the offer from Vodafone would benefit shareholders in the long-term, as opposed to enduring the risks associated with a medium-term improvement strategy.
UBS is acting as sole financial adviser to Vodafone and Vodafone Group. Barclays and Rothschild are acting as joint financial advisers to CWW.
CWW provides integrated communications and data hosting services to large enterprises
and mid-market customers in both the public and private sectors. The company also owns one of the U.K.’s largest fiber networks dedicated to business users of telecoms and provides access through a combination of fiber, digital microwave radio and leased circuits.
CWW’s revenue for 2011 was $3.6 billion with an operating profit of $246 million.
Vodafone Group is one of the world’s largest mobile communications companies by revenue
with over 398 million customers in its controlled and jointly controlled markets. Vodafone Group currently has a 45 percent stake in Verizon Wireless in the United States.
Samsung Video Previews New Galaxy Device
Samsung today released a video teasing the impending launch of its next Galaxy smartphone.
The video features pictures of galaxies and vague statements, such as: “Truly smart technology becomes a natural part of life” and “With a technology that fits in this easily, you can easily stand out from everyone else.”
That last line is superimposed over a flock of sheep, suggesting that Samsung could have a refresh of its standard form factor on tap with this latest offering. Also rumored is the possibility of a quad-core processor and higher-resolution screen.
Samsung’s mobile handset business has been growing by leaps and bounds. In its Q4 2011 earnings report, the company said it had sold 34 million smartphones in the last quarter of 2011. Equally impressive has been the performance of the Samsung Galaxy Note, which was selling at an average rate of 1 million units per month five months after its release.
As of Q4 2011, Samsung was the second largest seller of mobile devices behind Nokia. Samsung controlled 19.4 percent of the mobile devices market at the end of last year, according to Gartner.
Samsung is set to unveil the next Galaxy smartphone at a May 3 event in London.
Saturday
Sprint Rebuts NY AG Tax Dodging Charges
Sprint is denying allegations from the New York Attorney General that it has dodged $100 million in state taxes to gain a competitive advantage by making its plans cheaper.
“This complaint is without merit and Sprint categorically denies the complaint's allegations," Sprint spokesman John Taylor said in a statement. "We have collected and paid over to New York every penny of sales taxes on mobile wireless services that we believe our customers owe under New York state law."
Sprint allegedly underpaid $100 million in state and local sales taxes for wireless service over the past seven years in a scheme to make its service cheaper than its competitors, according to a suit filed yesterday under the False Claims Act by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.
"The decision not to collect and pay these taxes arose out of a nationwide effort by Sprint to obtain an advantage over its competitors - not by cutting its prices or offering better service - but by failing to collect and pay sales taxes its competitors properly collected and paid," the New York Attorney General's office said in its announcement yesterday.
According to the suit, the tax-dodge collectively made its plans cheaper by $4.6 million per month because of taxes left off customers' bills.
The state alleges that Sprint has yet to correct its business practices and is asking for $300 million in damages plus additional penalties if Sprint is found liable.
FCC Aims to Track Carrier Progress on Bill Shock
The FCC is looking to ensure an end to wireless bill shock with today’s announcement of a new website that will track the carriers’ progress in preventing unexpected charges at the end of the month.
The initiative comes as a result of an deal reached back in October 2011 between carriers and the FCC, wherein operators agreed to alert customers when they are approaching their monthly limits on voice, data and text messages, as well as when they will be hit with international roaming charges.
The new website will aim to ensure carriers keep that promise by keeping track of exactly where each carrier is at with respect to the agreed upon alerts. For example, the FCC website currently confirms that Sprint sends alerts to its customers if they are about to receive charges for international roaming, but the carrier does not have in place systems to alert customers for charges related to voice, data or text message overages.
The information is reported to the FCC by CTIA and will be updated, at least monthly, as new compliance information is provided by CTIA. The website will also indicate each carrier’s provision of the particular type of alert; link to the relevant details available on the carrier’s website; and show the designation “N/A” where a carrier offers an unlimited amount of the particular type of service, making the sending of usage alerts unnecessary.
According to the FCC, all alerts must be provided without charge, automatically, and subscribers should not have to take any action to receive the alerts. The carriers must provide their subscribers with at least two of the four types of alerts by Oct. 17, 2012, and all of the alerts by April 17, 2013.
In a recent study, the FCC found that 84 percent of American who experienced bill shock said they were unaware that they were about to exceed their limits and that their carriers had not alerted them of the pending charges. Fully 67 percent of overage charges reported to the FCC in 2010 were for more than $100, while 20 percent were for $1,000 or more.
Tango Gets $40M in New Funding
Many developers turn to the tried-and-true mobile advertising business model when faced with the task of turning a free app into a product that makes money.
Not so with Tango, a video chat service that has taken a new approach to finding sources of revenue.
Tango sells users of its free app animations they can incorporate into their video chat sessions. The first animation is free, and after that users can upgrade and buy a pack of animations for $1.99 a pop. Customers can also pay for cloud-based storage of their video messages. The most recent five video messages are stored for free, and customers can purchase storage for an additional five messages for 99 cents.
In the intimate world of video chat, where users communicate primarily with only their closest friends and relatives, "ads don't play a role," says Eric Setton, co-founder and chief technology officer. "We really want to make sure we're not in the way of your communications with these people."
The company's alternate approach to monetization has not gone unnoticed by investors. Yesterday, Tango announced it landed $40 million in Series C funding in a new round led by Qualcomm's venture capital arm and Access Industries. Setton's family members also participated in the round along with individual investors Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Michael Birch, Andy Bechtolsheim and Bill Hambrecht.
The cash brings Tango's total funding to nearly $100 million.
The animations and video storing options have proved popular with Tango's users since they became available in December. The success of the products has prompted the company to launch a new publishing platform and a storefront that makes it easier to release new animations and other content.
It also recently tested out a video greeting product, which it may eventually offer as another premium service.
Tango has gained steady traction in the marketplace amid heavy competition from other video chat providers like ooVoo and fring. It was the first to offer video chat for Windows Phone, beating out Microsoft-owned Skype, and is also available on the iPhone, Android smartphones and computers. It is also pre-loaded worldwide on Nokia's new flagship phone, the Lumia 900, and has partnerships with Samsung, HTC and LG.
Since its launch 18 months ago, 45 million people have signed up for Tango. The company says 10 percent use the service every day, and 44 percent are active users.
Amid Strong iPhone Sales, Verizon Supportive of Windows Phone
Verizon Wireless voiced support for Microsoft's Windows Phone today even though it carries just one smartphone using the operating system and has not yet said it will carry any Nokia devices running on the platform.
"It is important that there is a third ecosystem brought into the mix here," CFO Fran Shammo said during Verizon's first-quarter earnings call with analysts today. "We are fully support of that with Microsoft."
Shammo said Verizon was "looking to do the same thing" with Windows Phone as it did with Android. The operator was a main proponent of the Android platform before it got the iPhone and formed its popular Droid franchise with Motorola Mobility.
However, Shammo did not talk specifics about launching new Windows Phone devices. Nokia has staked its turnaround on Windows Phone and recently launched its Lumia 900 with AT&T and the Lumia 710 with T-Mobile USA. Verizon has yet to say it will carry Nokia's new Windows Phone devices and is rumored to have turned down the smartphones over concerns they would not work correctly with its LTE network.
The iPhone continues to dominate Verizon's device lineup. The operator sold 3.2 million iPhones during the first three months of this year, Shammo said, down slightly from the 4.2 million it sold in the fourth quarter, when sales were buoyed by the holiday season. Overall smartphone sales totaled 6.3 million. Smartphones now comprise about 47 percent of Verizon's customer base, from just 32 percent last year.
Verizon also sold 2.9 million LTE smartphones, tablets and USB modems during the first quarter, bringing its total number of LTE customers to 8 million. Two-thirds of its LTE customers own smartphones, Shammo said.
Verizon has been working to move customers over from its legacy 3G network to its new LTE network. About 9 percent of its customer base now uses the LTE network, up from less than a percentage point shortly after the service's launch last year.
The influx of lucrative new iPhone customers over the last two quarters helped grow retail service revenue at its highest rate in three years. Retail service revenue grew 8.9 percent year-over-year to $14.89 billion, contributing to total wireless sales of $18.27 billion. The rise in sales boosted operating income, which rose nearly 20 percent to $5.2 billion.
Postpaid ARPU rose to $55.43 on a 16 percent increase in data ARPU, which rose to $23.80. Total data revenues continued their upward momentum, coming in at $6.6 billion. Data now comprises nearly 43 percent of Verizon's service revenue.
The one dark spot on Verizon's otherwise healthy earnings was a dip in the number of new customers signing up for service. The company added just 734,000 net new customers, a 16.5 percent drop from the 879,000 it added during the same period last year.
Its number of new postpaid customers dropped 44 percent to 501,000, from the 906,000 net postpaid customers it added last year. The decline was offset by the addition of 233,000 net new prepaid customers. Postpaid churn came in at less than a percentage point at 0.96 percent.
Net adds have been slowing down for many providers amid higher saturation in the wireless market. Even so, Verizon managed to eke out a 5 percent increase in its overall customer base, which now numbers about 93 million.
Aside from his kind words for Microsoft, Shammo also discussed shared data plans and its decision yesterday to sell off some of its precious 700 MHz spectrum.
Bucket plans for data will launch around "mid-summer," Shammo said, confirming earlier statements made by Verizon executives. The new family-style data service will allow customers to "easily connect other devices to that plan," he said.
Shammo also attempted to clarify Verizon's reason for deciding to sell off some of the 700 MHz spectrum it purchased in 2008. "As company policy, we will not hoard spectrum," he said. After forging a deal to buy AWS spectrum from four cable companies last year, Verizon decided its lower 700 MHz A block and B block "does not fit as nicely into our spectrum holdings as it may for others."
As for the fact that the 700 MHz sell-off is contingent on the closing of the AWS deal, Shammo said that without the AWS spectrum, it would still need its A block and B block assets. "We didn't just wake up yesterday and decide to sell spectrum because we're running into roadblocks at the FCC," Shammo said, voicing confidence the AWS sale would be receive government approval by mid-summer.
Friday
Nokia Continues Struggle in Q1
Nokia’s troubles continue to mount, as the company today reported a $1.7 billion loss even on $9 billion in revenue and robust sales of its new Lumia line of high-end smartphones.
Nokia's loss includes $1.01 billion associated with the restructuring of Nokia Siemens Networks, $13 million in restructuring charges in Location & Commerce and a $119 million restructuring charge in Devices & Services.
Nokia finished the quarter with $6.3 billion in available cash, down 24 percent from a year ago.
The company blamed a year-on-year decline in net sales of Smart Devices – 11.3 million units in the first quarter – on significantly lower Symbian volumes. In the same quarter last year, Nokia sold 24.3 million smart devices.
Average selling price (ASP) for smart devices was down from $191 on the year-ago quarter to $187, which was driven primarily by price erosion due to the competitive environment and a higher proportion of sales of lower priced Symbian devices. Sequentially, ASP rose slightly, which Nokia attributed to a positive mix shift towards the sales of Nokia Lumia devices.
Today’s earnings come on a stream of troubling news from the Finnish OEM. Just last week, Nokia lowered its non-IFRS Devices & Services operating margin in the first-quarter 2012 to negative 3 percent, compared to the previously expected range of “around breakeven,” with a range of above or below approximately 2 percentage points.
Nokia’s stock fell nearly 15 percent on its revised forecast.
That warning was followed this week by a downgrade of Nokia's debt to near junk status by Moody’s rating agency, which cited a sharp decline in first-quarter cell phone sales that led to a 35 percent fall in revenue.
CEO Stephen Elop continues to frame the company’s woes as part of its transition to Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system in the face of “greater than expected competitive challenges.”
To its credit, Nokia has launched a total of four well-received Lumia devices ahead of schedule. Elop said that the company had exceeded expectations in markets including the United States, but noted that establishing momentum in the U.K. has been more challenging.
At the same time, Nokia’s bread-and-butter segment, the low-end feature phone, is slowly shifting to consumer preference for cheap low-end touch-based phones. Nokia says it is taking deliberate measures to renew its Series 40 platform and has plans to strengthen its line-up in Q2 2012.
Shares of Nokia were down almost 3 percent in early morning trading to $3.86 per share.
AT&T Ups Data for Prepaid GoPhone Customers
AT&T made its prepaid offerings a little more competitive yesterday when it doubled the amount of data offered to its GoPhone customers.
Customers on the $5 data plan will now get 50 MB, the $15 plan comes with 200 MB and the $25 plan comes with 1 GB. The new plans go into effect April 22.
The data plans are an add-on to AT&T's $50 all-you-can-eat talk and text prepaid plan and its $25 prepaid plan, which comes with unlimited text messaging and 250 voice minutes. AT&T prepaid customers adding data to their plans will end up paying $30 on the low end and $75 on the high end, depending on which rates they choose.
AT&T has traditionally been a postpaid shop, focusing on lucrative on-contract customers. Its new plans will help make its no-contract services more attractive to customers who typically go with cost-competitive prepaid providers.
Even so, AT&T's plans are still more costly than its competitors. Sprint prepaid brand Virgin Mobile USA offers an unlimited data plan with 300 voice minutes for just $35.
T-Mobile's $50 prepaid plan comes with unlimited voice calls, text messages and data, with a 100 MB cap before speed throttling sets in. Verizon Wireless also offers a $50 prepaid plan with unlimited talk, text and Internet access.
Smaller prepaid providers tend to be more cost-competitive than their larger rivals. MetroPCS unlimited prepaid plans start off at $40, with 250 MB of full-speed data before customers are knocked down to slower rates. Cricket's all-you-can-eat data plans start at $45 per month.
eBay CEO Talks Impact of Mobile
eBay CEO John Donahoe sees enormous opportunity for PayPal online, on mobile devices and, increasingly, in the offline environment.
"PayPal is delivering this innovation on a global scale," Donahoe said, according to a transcript of the company's earnings call provided by Seeking Alpha. "In fact, for the second consecutive quarter, more than half of PayPal's revenue came from outside the U.S., highlighting PayPal's expanding global footprint as people around the world look for a safer, easier way to pay in their domestic markets and across borders.”
EBay acquired PayPal for $1.5 billion back in 2002.
Donahoe said that the use of PayPal in mobile applications is growing. He used as an example retailer Cumberland Farms, which recently introduced an app known as SmartPay at 50 of its Boston area convenience store locations, which allows users to start the gas pump from their smartphone and pay for gas using PayPal.
On the mobile front, eBay launched Watch with eBay, the company's first iPad app that combines shopping and entertainment. Watch with eBay serves up merchandise related to what users are watching on TV, enabling them to shop based on inspiration from their favorite TV shows.
In the first quarter alone, the company reported 12 million downloads of eBay Mobile apps, bringing total downloads to 78 million since the launch of eBay Mobile.
Donahoe said mobile is having a big impact on the eCommerce market. He said that eCommerce was up a couple of points to 17 percent and noted that mobile apps are helping to drive that growth.
"This mobile is fundamentally changing the retail landscape, and there's no going back," Donahoe said, "This whole notion of a dual-device experience, having an iPad or a smartphone in your lap while you're watching TV, I think you'll see a lot of shopping innovation around that."
EBay blew past expectations in the first quarter. The company saw earnings increase 20 percent, reporting $570 million in profits, up from $476 in the year-ago quarter. Revenue grew 29 percent to $3.28 billion from $2.55 billion. Analysts had expected lower revenue of $3.15 billion, according to FactSet.
Wednesday
FCC Moves on Rules Benefitting Dish Wireless Plans
The FCC brought Dish Network's wireless plans one step closer to advancing this week when it set deadlines for comments on a plan for flexible use of the 2 GHz satellite band, a proposal that could ultimately allow Dish to launch its LTE network.
The FCC passed the proposal at its March 21 open meeting, and this week set deadlines for comment on the regulations after publishing its notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register on April 17.
Industry stakeholders have until May 17 to file their initial comments, with replies to those comments due June 1.
"We remain optimistic that this process can be concluded by the end the summer," a Dish Network spokesman said, calling the proposed regulations "critical."
The satellite provider asked the FCC to grant it a waiver to use 2 GHz spectrum purchased from bankrupt satellite companies TerreStar and DBSD for a land-based LTE-Advanced network. It argued to the agency that any delays in getting the waiver would "jeopardize DISH's ability to successfully enter the wireless market and would require us to consider other options."
The FCC denied Dish Network's request and said it would have to go through a formal rulemaking process. The decision came as the agency was reeling from the fallout over LightSquared, which was speedily granted a similar waiver only to run into major problems with GPS interference.
The FCC's move to opt for a time-consuming rulemaking instead of a waiver was a setback for Dish, which had told the FCC it could time its network to the commercial availability of LTE-Advanced equipment.
The agency appears to be staying true to its timeline for getting its proposal in place - its vote on the rulemaking came just three weeks after it decided against granting Dish its waiver, as promised - but it is not clear how long it could take to clear the various hurdles toward formal regulations.
Even if it passes the rules, they could still be challenged in court before going into effect.
Apple, Samsung Hinder Intel’s Smartphone Potential
Smartphones are becoming a bigger part of Intel's business, but Apple and Samsung, which together control about 50 percent of the global market, could cut into the chip maker's potential in the space.
Addressing questions after a Q1 earnings call, where Intel reported a 13 percent drop in profits due to a flat market and increased R&D costs, CEO Paul Otellini said that providing the innards for Samsung and Apple, both of which currently produce their own silicon, would be a huge boon for Intel, but not entirely necessary for the company to succeed.
"Even if you take out half of the market, which I would be loath to do, but even if you take it out, it's still a very large number," Otellini said, according to a transcript provided by Seeking Alpha.
Otellini also stressed that Intel continues to "have dialogue" with both Apple and Samsung in terms of the company's product line.
"And Samsung doesn't universally use its chips in its phones," he said. "They use other vendors, and that's certainly an account we would love to win for phones."
Otellini said he couldn't speak for Apple, adding that "we know where they are and they know where we are."
At Mobile World Congress, Intel demonstrated the first Atom-based Android phone, the Xolo X900 from Indian OEM Lava Mobiles. Lava has said that device will hit shelves tomorrow. The Xolo X900 is powered by Intel's Atom Z2460 processor, which is a single-core 1.6GHz Saltwell CPU.
Shares of Intel were down 2 percent at $27.78 in early trading.
Cox Slams Sprint with Patent Countersuit
Cox Communications is suing former business partner Sprint for patent infringement, a countersuit aimed at deflating a patent suit Sprint filed against Cox and three other companies last December.
The cable company claimed in a complaint filed in a Delaware district court on Monday that Sprint had violated two of its patents related to encoding digital program guides and video transcoding. It wants a permanent injunction against Sprint products and services related to the two disputed patents.
It also asked the court to declare the 12 patents named in Sprint's December complaint invalid, unenforceable or covered under its existing contracts.
"We are prepared to aggressively defend ourselves against Sprint’s allegations that we believe have no merit," a Cox spokesman said. "In addition, we will defend Cox’s valuable intellectual property using the appropriate legal channels."
Sprint declined to comment on the case.
The two companies' relationship soured late last year after Cox stopped using Sprint to provide wireless service to its cable customers and decided to sell its AWS spectrum to Verizon Wireless, a wide-ranging transaction that allowed it to sell Verizon's service in its own stores.
The three other companies that agreed to sell their AWS spectrum to Verizon, Time Warner Cable, Comcast and Bright House Networks, also signed exclusive deals to sell Verizon's wireless service, arrangements that will eventually end their existing contracts with Sprint.
One week after Cox forged the spectrum and marketing deal with Verizon, Sprint sued Cox, Comcast, Time Warner Cable and one other company not affiliated with the Verizon deal for violating its patented voice call routing technology.
Sprint asked the companies be banned from selling services that infringe on its patents, including Time Warner's Digital Home Phone and Comcast's XFinity Voice.
In its latest complaint, Cox said it still held contracts with Sprint and was not told about the intellectual property issues until after the companies had signed their agreement.
"Sprint did not inform Defendants of its pursuit of patent protection until well after the contractual relationships were in place," Cox said.
The FCC is still reviewing the AWS sale between Verizon and its four cable partners. Sprint, a vocal opponent to AT&T's takeover of T-Mobile USA, has expressed concerns about the deal but stopped short of asking the government to block it.
T-Mobile, MetroPCS and the Rural Telecommunications Group have asked the FCC to stop the transaction.
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Tuesday
T-Mobile Fined $819K by FCC Over Hearing Aid Law
T-Mobile USA is facing an $819,000 fine for violating FCC requirements to offer cell phones compatible with hearing aids.
The company appears to be the only top-tier wireless provider to be fined by the FCC for failing to comply with the hearing aid compatibility rules, according to a list of companies that violated the regulations posted on the agency's website.
The 2003 regulations are intended to make it easier for consumers with hearing loss to use wireless devices. Carriers can face a maximum $1.5 million fine for each failure to comply with the law.
T-Mobile allegedly fell short of the number of hearing-aid-compatible handsets it was supposed to carry under the regulations during all of 2009 and for seven months in 2010. The FCC set out staggered deadlines between 2008 and 2011 for the wireless industry to get up to speed with the rules.
During 2009, it was required to carry between three and five of the specialized devices, but didn't meet the standard, "repeatedly falling short each month during the year by as many as four handset models."
The problem continued into 2010, when it was supposed to offer between five and seven of the handsets, but "repeatedly falling short by at least one and by as many as three handset models."
“During this extended period of noncompliance, T-Mobile was short by a total of 52 handset models—a deficiency which gave potentially large number of consumers with hearing disabilities far fewer choices of compatible handsets than the minimum numbers required by our rules," the FCC said in a notice of apparent liability for forfeiture posted late last week to its website.
A T-Mobile spokeswoman said in a statement that it is "committed to providing high-quality products and services to all of its customers, including a broad selection of handsets that are hearing aid compatible. T-Mobile takes seriously its obligations to comply with its hearing aid compatibility responsibilities as part of our overall commitment to the accessibility needs of our customers."
The FCC claims T-Mobile inaccurately reported the number of WCDMA and GSM handsets it covered that were compatible with hearing aids. T-Mobile reportedly told the FCC the inaccuracies stemmed from flawed manufacturer reports on hearing aid compatibility ratings for "several" models, according to the agency's statement.
In January 2010, the FCC announced it was fining several regional providers and handset manufacturers for failing to bring themselves in line with the rules. Apple, ZTE, Cincinnati Bell Wireless and Alaskan operator General Communication Inc. were among the dozens of companies to be fined under the regulations since 2007.
Report: AT&T, T-Mobile Take Fastest Network Honors
This story has been updated to correct the statement that T-Mobile HSPA+ 42 is only available in 13 cities. It is actually available in 181 markets, reaching 184 million people across the country.
T-Mobile USA and AT&T finished top in their classes for 3G and 4G network performance respectively, according to this year’s PCWorld report that measures wireless network performance.
The study involved “snapshot measurements of wireless service in 13 cities — Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle and Washington, D.C. — across the country to get a real-time view of how the 3G-to-4G transition is progressing, and of which companies are currently delivering on the promised faster speeds.
According to the report, AT&T’s 4G LTE network delivered the fastest download speeds (9.56 Mbps) when compared with Verizon Wireless’ LTE network (7.53 Mbps), T-Mobile’s HSPA+ 42 network (5.54 Mbps) and Sprint’s WiMAX network (2.81 Mbps).
T-Mobile’s HSPA+ 21 network took the crown on the 3G side, reaching average download speeds of 3.84 Mbps across all test markets. AT&T’s HSPA+ network, which PCWorld categorized as 3G for this report, came in a close second with average download speeds of 2.62 Mbps, followed by Verizon Wireless (1.05 Mbps) and Sprint (.59 Mbps).
On the whole, average download speeds increased, as did the number of subscribers on the networks, leading to the conclusion that operators really are meeting the growing demand for data.
PC World called AT&T's pairing of 4G LTE service and 3G-equivalent HSPA+ service, ‘compelling’, because customers fall back from LTE to the carrier’s HSPA+ network, which proved faster than Verizon Wireless standard 3G network.
In a press release this morning, AT&T’s John Donovan, senior executive vice president of technology and network operations, said the carrier made a strategic decision to roll out ongoing upgrades to its 3G network on the way to LTE.
“It’s great to see the results of our 4G network strategy in PCWorld’s tests and in the feedback we’re getting from our customers,” Donovan said.
Verizon Wireless’ LTE network, which launched long before AT&T, is way ahead on coverage. The carrier has deployed LTE in at least 203 cities nationwide, while AT&T’s LTE network is currently up and running in only 31 cities.
Verizon Wireless was dismissive of the PC World report, saying that speed is only one facet of service.
Tom Pica, a spokesman for Verizon Wireless, cites a recent report by Root Metrics posted at GigaOm, as a more holistic picture of network performance. Root Metrics acknowledges that AT&T’s LTE service was indeed faster on the downlink in its tests, but it also notes that Verizon offers a more mature LTE network. Taking into consideration 15 total markets where both AT&T and Verizon Wireless’ LTE networks are present, Root Metrics found LTE service available during 92 percent of its download tests with Verizon and only 66 percent of the time with AT&T.
Root Metrics also found that while AT&T may have seen faster LTE speeds, users could expect to see speeds above 5 Mbps more often with Verizon. In its tests, Verizon exceeded 5 Mbps during 82 percent of download tests and 66 percent of upload tests. AT&T surpassed this number in only 68 percent of download tests and 40 percent of upload tests.
An official statement from Verizon Wireless issued in response to the PC World stated that the debate over 3G and 4G technologies will soon be over.
“By next year, our 4GLTE network will cover virtually the entire US, rendering the overstated 4G vs. 3G coverage discussion moot,” the statement said.
But with all the back and forth among the big guys, might we have overlooked the strong showing by T-Mobile, which consistently embraces what it calls its “challenger position.” With lower-priced, more flexible plans and fast, reliable 3G and HSPA+ 42 networks, it might be the little carrier that could.
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Monday
YouMail Ends BlackBerry Support
In what appears to be a sign of the times for Research In Motion (RIM), YouMail on Friday announced via its official blog that it is abandoning support for the BlackBerry platform.
YouMail, which provides voicemail service, has just released a final version of its app for BlackBerry, but that will be it as the company discontinues support for the platform altogether. BlackBerry was the first smartphone platform where YouMail started doing app development. The company credits BlackBerry with securing its first 1 million users.
In a blog post, the company called the decision "bittersweet," but added that over the past year it has seen its BlackBerry audience steadily shrink, "with a steady exodus of those users moving to the iPhone and to Android (where fortunately, they’re tending to keep YouMail as their voicemail service)."
"And we’ve also seen the number of BlackBerry users/day plummet while Android and iPhone users have soared," the blog noted., adding that "it’s sad, but on many days we’re now getting fewer BB users than Windows Phone 7 users, and we don’t even have a Windows Phone 7 app!"
The new free app release features a number of big fixes, as well as the elimination of ads. YouMail said in its blog post that there's always a possibility of returning to the platform.
"If BlackBerry stages a comeback (we’re rooting for BB10 to take off!), or we can figure out how to drive a meaningful number of new BlackBerry users, we’ll be back," the company said.
Lagging developer support has been one of the main criticisms leveled against RIM in its bid to produce a consumer-oriented high-end smartphone that can compete with the likes of Android and iOS.
RIM has been struggling with multiple delays to the launch of its QNX-based BlackBerry 10 platform, upon which the company plans to base all future smartphone models. In the first quarter of 2012, BlackBerry controlled 13.4 percent of total smartphone OS market, down 3.2 percent sequentially, according to comScore.
Nokia Releases Fix for Lumia 900 Connection Issues
Nokia on Friday said it has a fix for data connection problems that plagued the recently launched Nokia Lumia 900.
The company acknowledged a memory management issue was discovered that could, in some cases, lead to loss of data connectivity.
"This issue is purely in the phone software, and is not related to either phone hardware or the network itself," Nokia wrote on its Nokia Conversations blog.
Those who have already purchased a Lumia 900 will have one of two options. Those users can either update the device with the latest software via Zune "on or around Monday, April 16th," or they can swap their unit for an updated Lumia 900.
Nokia had already announced that everyone who has purchased a Nokia Lumia 900, or who will purchase one between now and April 21st, will receive a $100 credit to their AT&T bill from Nokia.
The $100 credit makes the phone essentially free on AT&T with a two-year contract. AT&T is currently offering the Lumia 900 for $99. A report from IHS iSuppli released last week estimates that the bill of materials (BOM) on the Lumia 900 is $209.
Friday
Google Offers Stock Split, Q1 Revenue Up 24%
Google yesterday reported an impressive $10.6 billion in revenue for the first quarter, up 24 percent over last year. The company also announced a stock split.
First-quarter profits jumped 61 percent, rising $1.8 billion for the same period last year to $2.89 billion.
CEO Larry Page, who took over last year for Eric Schmidt, said in a conference call that big-bet products like Chrome, Android and YouTube are starting to pay off for the Internet giant, which relies heavily on revenue from its search advertising business.
Page took time to quote from the original founders’ letter he wrote with co-founder Sergey Brin, wherein the two declared that “new investors will fully share in Google's long-term economic future, but will have little ability to influence its strategic decisions through their voting rights… By investing in Google, you're placing an unusual long-term bet on a team, especially Sergey and me."
Page quoted from the letter as proof that the plan is working, just prior to announcing a 2-for-1 stock split, something for which he said many investors had asked.
The newly created shares will be “non-voting” shares and will be distributed via a stock dividend to all existing shareholders. The move will cut in half the price of existing shares and allow Page and Brin to remain the company’s controlling shareholders.
“These non-voting shares will be available for corporate uses, like equity-based employee compensation, that might otherwise dilute our governance structure,” Page said.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Brin and Page own 28.6 percent and 29.1 percent of the company, followed by Eric Schmidt (9.7 percent) and “Others” (32.6 percent).
Concurrent with yesterday’s earnings release, Page and Brin released a Founders’ Letter for 2012, wherein the two justified the stock split as essential to allowing them to remain in control of the company. The pair made the case that a company’s success is often dependent on risky, long-term investments, such as Android, which might not have happened had investors had more voting rights.
“Technology products often require significant investment over many years to fulfill their potential. For example, it took over three years just to ship our first Android handset, and then another three years on top of that before the operating system truly reached critical mass,” the letter states, adding that “these kinds of investments are not for the faint-hearted.”
The pair acknowledged that some people, particularly those who opposed this structure at the start, would be unsupportive of the stock split, but that the pair had decided that a founder-led approach is in the best interests of Google, its shareholder and users.
“Having the flexibility to use stock without diluting our structure will help ensure we are set up for success for decades to come,” the letter argues.
The proposal is subject to the approval of a majority of the voting power of Google’s common stock, which will vote together as a single class, at the company’s annual meeting on June 21, 2012. Given that Page, Brin, and Schmidt control the majority of voting power, passage is almost a given.
On the subject of Android and what kind of return the company gets from it, Page said Google’s mobile platform is an important cohesive product that brings together many of its other products.
“And I think it does lead to better economics for us too because we're providing amazing experiences for people that are well integrated and work well and they demand,” Page said about Android.
When asked about Google’s tablet strategy given the meteoric rise of Apple’s iPad, Page acknowledged the competition but referenced “substantial investments” in things like Google Play as evidence that the company will continue to increase market share in the segment. He also said that lower-cost tablets that run Android, but not the full version of the platform, are good signs that the platform has a place in the tablet market.
Chris Antlitz, networking and mobility analyst for TBR, wrote in a research note that although Google is narrowing the gap against Apple in the tablet space (29 percent vs. 55 percent in 4Q11, according to TBR), the company is gearing up to accelerate Android tablet adoption in 2012.
“Hoping to mimic the online sales model Amazon is successfully using to sell the Kindle Fire, Google plans to open its own tablet storefront in 3Q12 and stock it with co-branded tablet devices from its OEM base,” Antlitz wrote, adding that Google also plans to aggressively optimize the Android operating system and applications for tablets to prevent incompatibility, as it has done with Ice Cream Sandwich.
Shares of Google remained flat immediately after the announcement yesterday but were down about 3 percent to $632 in early trading this morning.
Thursday
Analyst: Verizon Upgrade Fee to Bring In $1 Billion
How much will Verizon Wireless' new $30 upgrade fee add to the operator's coffers over the next year?
BTIG Research Analyst Walter Piecyk says the charge could add about $1 billion to the company's annual earnings before taxes, depreciation and amortization.
"Our estimate of $1 billion in EBITDA savings to Verizon is simply based on our estimate that it sells 33 million phones to existing customers," Piecyk said yesterday in a blog post."It’s possible that some of these upgrade phones are not subsidized and would therefore not incur the new fee but we would guess that there aren’t many people paying full price to upgrade to a $600 smartphone just to stay off a two year contract."
The estimate, if accurate, is nothing to be sneezed at, even by a company the size of Verizon Wireless. The figure is about one-sixth of its $6.4 billion fourth-quarter earnings before taxes, depreciation and amortization.
Verizon declined to comment on the report. Spokeswoman Brenda Raney said yesterday that the new fee "will help us continue to provide customers with the level of service and support they have come to expect."
Verizon was the last of the country's top four operators to charge existing customers additional money for upgrading to a new phone on contract. Subscribers with Sprint and AT&T pay $36 when they move to a new device with a two-year contract, while T-Mobile USA customers pay an $18 upgrade fee.
The tolls won't be the last move operators take to curb expensive, profit-eroding device upgrades, Piecyk said.
"Could it be long before smartphones get their own additional upgrade 'surcharge'?" he said, citing the extra $10 Sprint tacked on to its smartphone data plans.
So why not incorporate the upgrade fee into the cost of the device, instead of tacking it on as a hidden charge?
The answer is marketing, said Piecyk: "Upgrade fees like these enable carriers to advertise a fully subsidized cost and yet reduce the impact on sales by labeling it an upgrade fee."
New iPad Traffic Still Small Despite Record Sales
Apple's new iPad may have flown off shelves when it went on sale last month, with 3 million sold over its opening weekend, but that growth isn't yet being reflected in traffic to the device, according to the latest numbers from Jumptap.
The mobile advertising firm said today that while use of the tablet during the first six days after its launch was "heavy," it represented just under 2 percent of total iPad use on its network by the end of its first week on the market.
By comparison, the two previous models of the tablet comprised more than 90 percent of the total iPad traffic on Jumptap's network during that week.
Jumptap's advertising network reaches more than 107 million monthly users, allowing it to glean insights on mobile device trends.
Of course, it is early days for the latest iPad - Jumptap's numbers come from traffic measured during its first week on the market. Even with its high sales numbers, there are still fewer new iPads on the market than previous iterations of the device.
But these early numbers, while small, suggest that the new iPad is "stealing traffic" from the iPad 2, said Jumptap Chief Marketing Officer Paran Johar in a statement.
"This trend suggests that iPad2 users may be more inclined to switch to the (new iPad) than original iPad users," Johar said.
Among Jumptap's other findings: iPhone users are more likely to use Wi-Fi than Android and BlackBerry users. About 58 percent of iPhone users hooked up to Wi-Fi versus 35 percent of Android users and 41 percent of BlackBerry users.
Report: Lumia 900 Manages $209 BOM
Nokia’s Lumia 900 carries a bill of materials (BOM) of $209, according to a recent teardown of the device conducted by IHS iSuppli.
IHS said in a report that Nokia’s new smartphone features a cost-reduced design that reveals close cooperation between the handset brand, Microsoft and semiconductor supplier Qualcomm.
“This cooperation mimics Apple Inc.’s holistic approach to hardware and software development,” IHS wrote in its report.
The $209 BOM represents 46 percent of the Lumia 900’s $450 retail price, without a service contract. In contrast, Samsung’s S II Skyrocket, an Android smartphone that has a very similar feature set to the Lumia 900, carries a $236 BOM and a retail price that is $100 higher, at $550. The Skyrocket’s BOM amounts to only 43 percent of its retail price.
IHS previously found that the BOM on Apple’s iPhone 4S was $189.
“With the Lumia 900, Nokia, Microsoft and Qualcomm have taken a page from Apple Inc.’s playbook by closely tying together the hardware and software to produce a full-featured smartphone that is based on relatively inexpensive electronic components,” said Andrew Rassweiler, senior principal analyst, teardown services, at IHS, in a statement.
Rassweiler also notes that while Apple capitalizes on its low hardware costs to attain its industry-leading margins, Nokia is using this approach to offer an inexpensive phone intended to compete on the basis of price as part of the company’s strategy to enter the hyper-competitive market as a third ecosystem.
IHS notes that Microsoft also may have helped reach the lower price point by pitching in on the operating system software side.
“Given the highly strategic partnership with Nokia, we believe Microsoft substantially discounted its software licensing fees on the Lumia 900 to accommodate the overall lowered manufacturing costs,” said Wayne Lam, senior analyst, wireless communications at IHS, in a statement.
Wednesday
Instagram's Android App Tops 5 Million Downloads
Nokia Shares Plummet on More Bad News
Shares of Nokia plummeted nearly 15 percent Wednesday morning as the Finnish OEM lowered its first-quarter 2012 outlook for Devices & Services.
Nokia lowered its non-IFRS Devices & Services operating margin in the first-quarter 2012 to negative 3 percent, compared to the previously expected range of “around breakeven,” with a range of above or below approximately 2 percentage points.
Nokia estimates that Devices & Services net sales in the first quarter of 012 were $5.5 billion, comprised of Mobile Phones net sales of $3.02 billion (71 million units), Smart Devices net sales of $2.23 billion (12 million units), and Devices & Services “Other” net sales of $263 million.
The company said it sold more than 2 million Lumia devices in the first quarter at an average selling price of approximately $289. The company says it has seen sequential growth in Lumia device activations every month since starting sales of Lumia devices in November 2011. Lumia has gained market share with both distribution partners and consumers. The Windows Phone ecosystem is also attracting developers and has expanded with more than 80,000 applications available.
Stephen Elop, president and CEO of Nokia, said in a statement that the company is clearly still in flux as it makes the switch to Microsoft's Windows Phone operating system.
"Within our Smart Devices business unit, we have established early momentum with Lumia, and we are increasing our investments in Lumia to achieve market success," Elop wrote, adding that this past weekend's launch of the Lumia 900 with AT&T in the United States points to strengthening operator and distributor partnerships.
Nokia lowered its non-IFRS Devices & Services operating margin in the first-quarter 2012 to negative 3 percent, compared to the previously expected range of “around breakeven,” with a range of above or below approximately 2 percentage points.
Nokia estimates that Devices & Services net sales in the first quarter of 012 were $5.5 billion, comprised of Mobile Phones net sales of $3.02 billion (71 million units), Smart Devices net sales of $2.23 billion (12 million units), and Devices & Services “Other” net sales of $263 million.
The company said it sold more than 2 million Lumia devices in the first quarter at an average selling price of approximately $289. The company says it has seen sequential growth in Lumia device activations every month since starting sales of Lumia devices in November 2011. Lumia has gained market share with both distribution partners and consumers. The Windows Phone ecosystem is also attracting developers and has expanded with more than 80,000 applications available.
Stephen Elop, president and CEO of Nokia, said in a statement that the company is clearly still in flux as it makes the switch to Microsoft's Windows Phone operating system.
"Within our Smart Devices business unit, we have established early momentum with Lumia, and we are increasing our investments in Lumia to achieve market success," Elop wrote, adding that this past weekend's launch of the Lumia 900 with AT&T in the United States points to strengthening operator and distributor partnerships.
Verizon Wireless to Start $30 Upgrade Fee April 22
Verizon Wireless said today it will begin charging customers a $30 upgrade fee beginning April 22 for buying a new device at a discounted price.
AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile USA already impose the fee. Verizon is the last of the major operators to make customers pay extra for getting a new phone on contract.
"This fee will help us continue to provide customers with the level of service and support they have come to expect," company spokeswoman Brenda Raney said in a statement.
Customers can trade in their old devices through Verizon's trade-in program "as a way to save money or potentially offset the fee completely," she said.
Upgrade fees have long been in place at other carriers. Sprint doubled its upgrade fee from $18 to $36 last year, and AT&T followed suit in February when announced it would charge existing customers $36 to get a new phone. T-Mobile USA charges customers $18 when they move to a new device.
Operators say the fees are necessary to offset the cost of pricey new smartphones which cost more to subsidize than more basic devices. The charges mean both new and current customers pay extra charges nearly every time they get a new device, since operators also charge activation fees. -Maisie Ramsay Wirelessweek.com
AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile USA already impose the fee. Verizon is the last of the major operators to make customers pay extra for getting a new phone on contract.
"This fee will help us continue to provide customers with the level of service and support they have come to expect," company spokeswoman Brenda Raney said in a statement.
Customers can trade in their old devices through Verizon's trade-in program "as a way to save money or potentially offset the fee completely," she said.
Upgrade fees have long been in place at other carriers. Sprint doubled its upgrade fee from $18 to $36 last year, and AT&T followed suit in February when announced it would charge existing customers $36 to get a new phone. T-Mobile USA charges customers $18 when they move to a new device.
Operators say the fees are necessary to offset the cost of pricey new smartphones which cost more to subsidize than more basic devices. The charges mean both new and current customers pay extra charges nearly every time they get a new device, since operators also charge activation fees. -Maisie Ramsay Wirelessweek.com
Tuesday
How to Root Your Verizon Galaxy Nexus
If you’re anything like me, you always have to have the latest and greatest piece of technology. Unlike me, though, you may not be eager take that shiny new gadget and unlock, root, install a custom OS, or brick it in the name of progress. Rooting an Android smartphone and installing custom firmware is always a risky proposition, and by doing so you void your smartphone warranty and may even render the device inoperable. Please be careful when trying to root your phone, as we cannot be held responsible for the consequences if you accidentally brick your Galaxy Nexus in an attempt to make it more awesome. Of course, Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus (with Google's Android OS and Verizon as carrier) is already a pretty awesome smartphone; it may be the best phone currently on the market, and it's certainly one of the best smartphones Google has ever endorsed.
That said, there are always things you want to do to make your phone work a little bit better. The Samsung Galaxy Nexus running stock Android won't let you tweak how the notification LED works, for instance, and at this date you can’t run a full backup in stock Android. Also, Google Wallet has been blocked by Verizon, and if you're a Verizon subscriber you may want to try it out anyway by hacking your phone. Those plus at least a hundred other reasons are why you should unlock and root your Galaxy Nexus (though it's possible to install carrier-blocked apps without rooting your phone if that's all you're after); installing custom firmware is a great way to get the most out of your device if you do it right. To help you do that, I've put together a step-by-step tutorial on how to root a Galaxy Nexus.
As a little bit of prep work before we start, though, let’s run through the basics. You need to have the Android SDK package installed for whatever operating system you have running on your PC. If you don’t have it installed, you can find simple instructions for doing so at the Android SDK website. In particular, make sure you have the fastboot and adb files installed on your PC before you continue on. Please note that these instructions are meant for the Verizon CDMA version of the Galaxy Nexus, though other versions probably require the same process (just different files).
First: download these two files:
1.) http://download.clockworkmod.com/recoveries/recovery-clockwork-5.5.0.4-toro.img
2.) http://download.clockworkmod.com/test/su.zip
The first is the image file you’ll be replacing your stock image of Android with to allow you to root your device. The second is the file you’ll "flash" (install, basically) to your phone to actually gain root access. Now that you have those files and the Android SDK, let’s get started. Please note that you must wipe your phone back to factory default during the rooting process, so make sure to back up your data beforehand. Check out our guide to backing up your Android phone for tips on how to make sure your data doesn't disappear.
1. Turn off your phone and boot into recovery. You do this by pressing both volume buttons and the power button at the same time. Your phone will vibrate, and then boot into recovery.
2. Plug your phone into your PC.
3. Open Command Prompt on your Windows 7 PC by opening the Start Menu and selecting All Programs, Accessories, Command Prompt. Once the Command Prompt opens, type the following: fastboot oem unlock -- this will bring up a warning on your phone, telling you that unlocking your device voids your warranty; go ahead and proceed. (You remembered to back up, right?)
4. Next, type fastboot flash recovery recovery-clockwork-5.5.0.4-toro.img -- this flashes the custom image over your stock image, paving the way for your device to be rooted.
5. Finally, type adb push su.zip /sdcard/ -- this uploads su.zip to your phone (make sure to include the trailing /).
At this point your phone should be in Recovery Mode, so choose the option for “install a .zip from the sdcard,” and install su.zip. That’s it; reboot your device, and it should be unlocked and rooted. It will also be completely wiped, as stated. -Jason Kennedy of PCWorld.com
Carriers, FCC Crack Down on Smartphone Theft
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski and Christopher Guttman-McCabe, vice president of regulatory affairs for CTIA, were on hand today in Washington, D.C., to announce a new initiative to help curb the theft of cell phones.
Genachowski and Guttman-McCabe were joined by various law enforcement officials and Sen. Charles E. Schumer, (D-N.Y.), to announce a plan that will allow carriers to disable devices once reported stolen and make it a federal crime to tamper with an International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number, the equivalent of a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN).
Ray Kelly, commissioner of the New York Police Department, and Cathy Lanier, chief of the Washington, D.C., Police Department, rendered the scale of the problem and decried the violent nature of the assaults associated with device theft.
Charles Ramsey, commissioner of the Philadelphia Police Department, likened what's happening with smartphones right now to what law enforcement officials saw back in the ’80s with Nike's Air Jordan basketball shoes, when kids were assaulted for their shoes.
“What we’re attempting to do is like draining the swamp to fight malaria,” Ramsey said.
There are a number of facets to the initiative. Wireless carriers, in conjunction with law enforcement, CTIA and the FCC, will implement databases to prevent reactivation of stolen smartphones. By October 2012, U.S. GSM providers will implement a database so that stolen GSM smartphones will not work on any U.S. GSM network.
In addition, U.S. providers will create a common database for LTE smartphones designed to prevent smartphones that are reported stolen by consumers from being activated or provided service on any LTE network in the U.S. and on appropriate international LTE stolen mobile smartphone databases. That database will be completed by Nov. 30, 2013.
The industry also will be working to educate consumers on the problems associated with cell phone theft and privacy. Such efforts will include on-device prompts to create passwords and advertising campaigns to raise awareness about the problem.
Jim Bugel, AT&T assistant vice president of public safety and homeland security, said in a blog post that AT&T will launch a new website designed to better educate customers on how to protect their device and personal information and what to do should their device be stolen.
Genachowski said the FCC will begin meeting with law enforcement officials on a quarterly basis to discuss progress on the initiative and to get updates on any other challenges related to crime and wireless technologies.
Genachowski and Guttman-McCabe were joined by various law enforcement officials and Sen. Charles E. Schumer, (D-N.Y.), to announce a plan that will allow carriers to disable devices once reported stolen and make it a federal crime to tamper with an International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number, the equivalent of a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN).
Ray Kelly, commissioner of the New York Police Department, and Cathy Lanier, chief of the Washington, D.C., Police Department, rendered the scale of the problem and decried the violent nature of the assaults associated with device theft.
Charles Ramsey, commissioner of the Philadelphia Police Department, likened what's happening with smartphones right now to what law enforcement officials saw back in the ’80s with Nike's Air Jordan basketball shoes, when kids were assaulted for their shoes.
“What we’re attempting to do is like draining the swamp to fight malaria,” Ramsey said.
There are a number of facets to the initiative. Wireless carriers, in conjunction with law enforcement, CTIA and the FCC, will implement databases to prevent reactivation of stolen smartphones. By October 2012, U.S. GSM providers will implement a database so that stolen GSM smartphones will not work on any U.S. GSM network.
In addition, U.S. providers will create a common database for LTE smartphones designed to prevent smartphones that are reported stolen by consumers from being activated or provided service on any LTE network in the U.S. and on appropriate international LTE stolen mobile smartphone databases. That database will be completed by Nov. 30, 2013.
The industry also will be working to educate consumers on the problems associated with cell phone theft and privacy. Such efforts will include on-device prompts to create passwords and advertising campaigns to raise awareness about the problem.
Jim Bugel, AT&T assistant vice president of public safety and homeland security, said in a blog post that AT&T will launch a new website designed to better educate customers on how to protect their device and personal information and what to do should their device be stolen.
Genachowski said the FCC will begin meeting with law enforcement officials on a quarterly basis to discuss progress on the initiative and to get updates on any other challenges related to crime and wireless technologies.
Best Buy Mobile Solutions-Upgrade Checker
Need or want a phone upgrade? Check now via the Upgrade Checker Feature to see if you are eligible for an upgrade with your service provider.
Monday
EXEC WIRE NEWS: Best Buy Mobile Solutions and ebay Partnership
Exec Wire is proud to announce that we have also officially partnered with ebay and Best Buy Mobile.
Facebook Acquires Instagram for $1B
Facebook Monday said it has reached an agreement to acquire Instagram for approximately $1 billion in a combination of cash and Facebook shares. The transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to close later this quarter.
Instagram, which allows users to share only photos via its own social network, was originally launched as an iOS app. Just this past week, however, Instragram went live with an app for Android.
Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, posted about the transaction on his Timeline, saying that Facebook and Instragam complement one another but that Facebook needs to be mindful about "keeping and building on Instagram's strengths and features rather than just trying to integrate everything into Facebook."
Zuckerberg said his company is committed to and growing Instagram independently. He wrote that the fact that Instagram is connected to other services beyond Facebook is an important part of the experience.
"We plan on keeping features like the ability to post to other social networks, the ability to not share your Instagrams on Facebook if you want, and the ability to have followers and follow people separately from your friends on Facebook," Zuckerberg wrote.
Zuckerberg called the acquisition an important milestone for Facebook because it's the first time the company has ever acquired a product and company with so many users.
"We don't plan on doing many more of these, if any at all," he wrote. "But providing the best photo sharing experience is one reason why so many people love Facebook and we knew it would be worth bringing these two companies together."
Kevin Systrom, CEO of Instagram, said via Instragram's official blog that he and co-founder Mike Krieger couldn’t be happier to announce that Instagram has agreed to be acquired by Facebook.
Systrom and Krieger started the company two years ago. In just 18 months the service had 30 million active users and was voted iPhone app of the year for 2011. In his post, Systrom stressed that Instragram is not going away.
"We’ll be working with Facebook to evolve Instagram and build the network. We’ll continue to add new features to the product and find new ways to create a better mobile photos experience," he wrote.
Instagram, which allows users to share only photos via its own social network, was originally launched as an iOS app. Just this past week, however, Instragram went live with an app for Android.
Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, posted about the transaction on his Timeline, saying that Facebook and Instragam complement one another but that Facebook needs to be mindful about "keeping and building on Instagram's strengths and features rather than just trying to integrate everything into Facebook."
Zuckerberg said his company is committed to and growing Instagram independently. He wrote that the fact that Instagram is connected to other services beyond Facebook is an important part of the experience.
"We plan on keeping features like the ability to post to other social networks, the ability to not share your Instagrams on Facebook if you want, and the ability to have followers and follow people separately from your friends on Facebook," Zuckerberg wrote.
Zuckerberg called the acquisition an important milestone for Facebook because it's the first time the company has ever acquired a product and company with so many users.
"We don't plan on doing many more of these, if any at all," he wrote. "But providing the best photo sharing experience is one reason why so many people love Facebook and we knew it would be worth bringing these two companies together."
Kevin Systrom, CEO of Instagram, said via Instragram's official blog that he and co-founder Mike Krieger couldn’t be happier to announce that Instagram has agreed to be acquired by Facebook.
Systrom and Krieger started the company two years ago. In just 18 months the service had 30 million active users and was voted iPhone app of the year for 2011. In his post, Systrom stressed that Instragram is not going away.
"We’ll be working with Facebook to evolve Instagram and build the network. We’ll continue to add new features to the product and find new ways to create a better mobile photos experience," he wrote.
Nokia Lumia 900 Live in Times Square - Nicki Minaj: Starships (Doorly re...
Nokia figured the Big Apple's Times Square was the best place to make a scene. The Finnish OEM threw an all-out multimedia extravaganza in Times Square on Friday night, which featured a performance by Nicki Minaj.
The show was aimed at alerting consumers in the United States to this weekend's launch of the Nokia Lumia 900, the company's new high-end smartphone.
Nokia is calling this one of the "biggest and most important launches" in the company’s history.
The Lumia 900 is on sale now through AT&T for $99 with a two-year contract. The device, which has seen favorable reviews and was developed specifically for a North American audience, emerges as Nokia's flagship smartphone here in the United States, following closely in the footsteps of the Lumia 800, which is on sale in the Europe.
The mid-range Lumia 710 launched with T-Mobile in the United States on Jan. 11.
The phone features a 4.3-inch clear black AMOLED display, 1830 mAh battey, 1.4 GHz processor and wide-angle front and rear-facing cameras. The 900 comes preloaded with apps by CNN, ESPN, as well as a video-calling application from Tango.
Check out the scene from Times Square on Friday night in the video below:
The show was aimed at alerting consumers in the United States to this weekend's launch of the Nokia Lumia 900, the company's new high-end smartphone.
Nokia is calling this one of the "biggest and most important launches" in the company’s history.
The Lumia 900 is on sale now through AT&T for $99 with a two-year contract. The device, which has seen favorable reviews and was developed specifically for a North American audience, emerges as Nokia's flagship smartphone here in the United States, following closely in the footsteps of the Lumia 800, which is on sale in the Europe.
The mid-range Lumia 710 launched with T-Mobile in the United States on Jan. 11.
The phone features a 4.3-inch clear black AMOLED display, 1830 mAh battey, 1.4 GHz processor and wide-angle front and rear-facing cameras. The 900 comes preloaded with apps by CNN, ESPN, as well as a video-calling application from Tango.
Check out the scene from Times Square on Friday night in the video below:
AT&T Offers Unlock Assistance On iPhone
AT&T over the weekend began offering an unlocking solution for iPhone customers who have completed their contracts, according to an official statement from the carrier.
The carrier said that beginning April 8, it will offer qualifying customers the ability to unlock their AT&T iPhones. The only requirements are that a customer's account must be in good standing and the device to be unlocked must not be associated with an active account.
Different from jailbreaking, which allows an iPhone to run third-party applications, an iPhone unlocking solution allows users to take their device to any GSM carrier network that supports the iPhone's micro-SIM card.
Third-party iPhone unlocking solutions have been around for a while but are considered risky as they can result in permanent damage to the device if not done correctly.
The carrier said that beginning April 8, it will offer qualifying customers the ability to unlock their AT&T iPhones. The only requirements are that a customer's account must be in good standing and the device to be unlocked must not be associated with an active account.
Different from jailbreaking, which allows an iPhone to run third-party applications, an iPhone unlocking solution allows users to take their device to any GSM carrier network that supports the iPhone's micro-SIM card.
Third-party iPhone unlocking solutions have been around for a while but are considered risky as they can result in permanent damage to the device if not done correctly.
Sunday
Vivint Home Security, Energy Management, and Automation
Vivint is the largest privately owned home security company in North America. Vivint has been a leader in home security for more than 12 years and is working to help homeowners in the United States and Canada protect their families, increase energy efficiency, and simplify their lives directly from your smartphone.
Saturday
LG Lucid
The two main things I have against the LG Lucid is that it has subpar call quality, and it glitters in sunlight. Kind of like how vampires do, circa 2005-2008.
The sparkling isn't actually that noticeable. In addition to that, it's only limited to the back of the phone, which has a subtle dark purple and black-striped design. This aesthetic might not be for everybody, however.
As for the call quality, there's no way to get around that. Voices sounded muffled and harshly tinny, but calls were always steady and didn't cut in and out.
Despite it being shipped with Android Gingerbread (it is upgradable to Ice Cream Sandwich, but it would have been better, of course, if it natively came with ICS), I liked this handset.
If you buy it off of Verizon's Web site and sign a two-year contract, it'll set you back a reasonable $79.99. With that money, you get a 4G LTE network, a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, a vibrant 4-inch screen that's responsive and zippy, and a decent camera.
It's a smart buy if you're shopping for your first Android smartphone, but be warned: It's considered "midrange," but with these specs, you might feel a little spoiled. (www.cnet.com)
Friday
More HTC handsets with Beats headphones? Probably not...
Don't expect HTC to pack Beats headphones or earbuds with the Evo 4G LTE -- or any of its smartphones for the time being. HTC is shelving the idea. One lesson the company learned from last year's Sensation XL and the Rezound: customers don't really choose smartphones based on the headphones -- even headphones with a brand as recognizable as Beats.
iPhone Lands at Regional Carrier nTelos | Wireless Week
The latest wireless operator to land the iPhone isn't T-Mobile USA or U.S. Cellular. It's nTelos Wireless, a regional carrier with less than a half million customers.
The company announced today it would begin selling the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 on April 20, when it plans to open stores early at 7 a.m. EDT for customers who want to get their hands on the device.
NTelos is the second regional operator to get the iPhone after C Spire Wireless began selling the device last November.
Apple's apparent decision to open the iPhone to smaller operators has been something of a victory for regional carriers, which have argued that exclusivity agreements like AT&T's four-year grip on the iPhone forced their customers to choose between high-profile smartphones and their preferred provider.
Jim Hyde, president and CEO of nTelos, said in a statement that the company was "pleased" to be able to offer the iPhone to its customers.
"iPhone 4S offers an abundance of new features, and with our industry-leading, nationwide smartphone plans, customers can now enjoy the nation’s best networks for less," he said.
The company is selling the iPhone at a $50 discount from its larger competitors. The 16 GB model of the iPhone 4S sells for $150, the 32 GB model goes for $250 and the 64 GB model runs at $350. The iPhone 4 will retail at the cut-rate price of $50.
Customers must sign a new two-year contract and sign up for a smartphone plan, which begin at $80 per month and include unlimited data and messaging.
Financial details of the agreement between nTelos and Apple were not disclosed. Sprint is paying $15.5 billion for the privilege of selling the device, but its sales volumes are expected to dwarf those of a carrier the size of nTelos.
Getting the iPhone onto shelves at regional wireless providers has been a goal of the Rural Cellular Association (RCA). Steve Berry, RCA's president and CEO, said at a conference last week that the trade association has "tried for a long time to get Apple engaged with our members."
If nTelos' iPhone announcement is any indication, those efforts may be paying off. At the same event, Atlantic Tele-Network President and CEO Michael Prior said the iPhone "will continue to make its way through (the RCA's) membership."
NTelos had 414,500 customers at the end of last year. It provides wireless service in Virginia, West Virginia and portions of Maryland, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Kentucky. It also has a roaming agreement with Sprint to provide wholesale access to its CDMA EV-DO network in some of its markets through mid-2015.
iPhone Lands at Regional Carrier nTelos | Wireless Week
The company announced today it would begin selling the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 on April 20, when it plans to open stores early at 7 a.m. EDT for customers who want to get their hands on the device.
NTelos is the second regional operator to get the iPhone after C Spire Wireless began selling the device last November.
Apple's apparent decision to open the iPhone to smaller operators has been something of a victory for regional carriers, which have argued that exclusivity agreements like AT&T's four-year grip on the iPhone forced their customers to choose between high-profile smartphones and their preferred provider.
Jim Hyde, president and CEO of nTelos, said in a statement that the company was "pleased" to be able to offer the iPhone to its customers.
"iPhone 4S offers an abundance of new features, and with our industry-leading, nationwide smartphone plans, customers can now enjoy the nation’s best networks for less," he said.
The company is selling the iPhone at a $50 discount from its larger competitors. The 16 GB model of the iPhone 4S sells for $150, the 32 GB model goes for $250 and the 64 GB model runs at $350. The iPhone 4 will retail at the cut-rate price of $50.
Customers must sign a new two-year contract and sign up for a smartphone plan, which begin at $80 per month and include unlimited data and messaging.
Financial details of the agreement between nTelos and Apple were not disclosed. Sprint is paying $15.5 billion for the privilege of selling the device, but its sales volumes are expected to dwarf those of a carrier the size of nTelos.
Getting the iPhone onto shelves at regional wireless providers has been a goal of the Rural Cellular Association (RCA). Steve Berry, RCA's president and CEO, said at a conference last week that the trade association has "tried for a long time to get Apple engaged with our members."
If nTelos' iPhone announcement is any indication, those efforts may be paying off. At the same event, Atlantic Tele-Network President and CEO Michael Prior said the iPhone "will continue to make its way through (the RCA's) membership."
NTelos had 414,500 customers at the end of last year. It provides wireless service in Virginia, West Virginia and portions of Maryland, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Kentucky. It also has a roaming agreement with Sprint to provide wholesale access to its CDMA EV-DO network in some of its markets through mid-2015.
iPhone Lands at Regional Carrier nTelos | Wireless Week
HTC Q1 Sales, Profit Tank on Smartphone Competition | Wireless Week
HTC saw steep declines in both sales and profits during the first quarter as it continues to lose market share to smartphone rivals Apple and Samsung.
The Taiwanese handset maker released unaudited financial results today showing its first-quarter sales dropped nearly 35 percent over last year to $2.3 billion. Profits dived 70 percent to about $151 million.
The company didn't elaborate on its slumping financials but had warned investors it expected to have a weak first quarter. HTC has been ceding ground to other handset manufacturers in recent months, a reversal of fortune from its former success with the Android platform.
IDC reported that HTC lost market share to Apple and Samsung during the last three months of 2011. Even though HTC posted an increase in shipment volumes, its overall share of the global handset market dropped two percentage points to just 6.5 percent, a position dwarfed by Apple and Samsung's combined market share of 46.3 percent.
ComScore recently reported that HTC had made some gains in the key U.S. market but still lags behind its larger competitors. Its share of the U.S. smartphone market inched up four-tenths of a percentage point to 6.3 percent between December of last year and the end of February.
Samsung and its Android-based Galaxy devices held 25.6 percent of the market during the same period, with Apple's ever-popular iPhone holding 13.5 percent.
HTC is staking its turnaround efforts on its One series of smartphones released at Mobile World Congress. The three smartphones run the latest version of Android and feature an updated user interface.
T-Mobile USA will be the country's first operator to carry a device from the line, the HTC One S. The phone will launch sometime this spring, but specific availability and pricing have yet to be announced.
HTC Q1 Sales, Profit Tank on Smartphone Competition | Wireless Week
The Taiwanese handset maker released unaudited financial results today showing its first-quarter sales dropped nearly 35 percent over last year to $2.3 billion. Profits dived 70 percent to about $151 million.
The company didn't elaborate on its slumping financials but had warned investors it expected to have a weak first quarter. HTC has been ceding ground to other handset manufacturers in recent months, a reversal of fortune from its former success with the Android platform.
IDC reported that HTC lost market share to Apple and Samsung during the last three months of 2011. Even though HTC posted an increase in shipment volumes, its overall share of the global handset market dropped two percentage points to just 6.5 percent, a position dwarfed by Apple and Samsung's combined market share of 46.3 percent.
ComScore recently reported that HTC had made some gains in the key U.S. market but still lags behind its larger competitors. Its share of the U.S. smartphone market inched up four-tenths of a percentage point to 6.3 percent between December of last year and the end of February.
Samsung and its Android-based Galaxy devices held 25.6 percent of the market during the same period, with Apple's ever-popular iPhone holding 13.5 percent.
HTC is staking its turnaround efforts on its One series of smartphones released at Mobile World Congress. The three smartphones run the latest version of Android and feature an updated user interface.
T-Mobile USA will be the country's first operator to carry a device from the line, the HTC One S. The phone will launch sometime this spring, but specific availability and pricing have yet to be announced.
HTC Q1 Sales, Profit Tank on Smartphone Competition | Wireless Week
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