T-Mobile Archives » Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer on Wireless Siting & Law

FCC OKs T-Mobile/MetroPCS Merger: Free Lease Analysis for Landlords

Posted on March 13, 2013March 13, 2013 by Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer

The FCC voted to approve T-Mobile’s application to acquire MetroPCS.

The next step–and perhaps the last real hurdle before the merger can be completed–is an affirmative vote of MetroPCS shareholders during a scheduled April 12 shareholders meeting.

For MetroPCS site landlords, this is a major step towards the shuttering of some 10,000 MetroPCS sites. See my story on this from last November.

Most likely, the earliest hits will occur to cell sites that presently have both MetroPCS and T-Mobile leases. The likely next round will be for MetroPCS sites located near existing T-Mobile sites. Finally, it’s quite likely that some T-Mobile sites will be shuttered where an existing collocated or nearby MetroPCS site will better suit the needs of the merged company. This may well be the case if you area a T-Mobile site Landlord currently receiving an ab0ve-market rental rate, and a suitable nearby MetroPCS site is available for joint use.

Is your existing cell site lease and income at risk? No-charge lease analysis for MetroPCS and T-Mobile Landlords.

If you are presently a MetroPCS or T-Mobile site Landlord, Telecom Law Firm, P.C. is offering a no-charge, no obligation lease review to help you quantify your risk, prepare for possible site termination, and develop strategies to deal with the outgoing carrier. Just give us a call toll-free on 855-CELL SITE (855-235-5748 ) and let’s talk. You won’t be on the clock.

Jonathan Atkin on the pending T-Metro marriage

Posted on October 7, 2012 by Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer

Jonathan Atkin analyzes the wireless sector for RBC Capital Markets, LLC.

Better put, Jon dissects the wireless sector, looking at the players, numbers, and technologies in multiple contexts and from multiple angles spotting nuances leading to a much deeper and more complete worldview of wireless.

I have had the pleasure of hearing Jon present at several AGL regional conferences, and I always walk away from his presentations with a much keener view of the wireless industry and its direction(s).

Jon released a research report a few days ago on the pending T-Metro marriage that is well worth reading and understanding. He summarizes his research this way:

Our initial take is that a potential business combination between T-Mobile and MetroPCS is of dubious merit for Deutsche Telekom under business conditions and public-market valuations. We expect few regulatory barriers to such a deal, and believe Sprint could benefit competitively.

Jon points out that the proposed T-Metro intermarriage is one of different transmission technology religions. This rules out quick systems’ integrations and synergies as each partner will continue to practice its own signal transmission religion for for foreseeable future. He cites Sprint as a much more suitable marriage partner for MetroPCS given that both of them practice the same signal transmission technology religion. (Hey, it’s my metaphor…go with it.)

Not mentioned in Jon’s analysis is that with Sprint’s deployment of its Network Vision project, that firm will be in a much better position to rapidly deploy MetroPCS services from the new Network Vision sites. This would allow Sprint to shutter some/many MetroPCS sites quickly, substantially reducing site lease rental costs, especially at existing collocated Sprint/MetroPCS sites.

The funny thing is that a Sprint+MetroPCS marriage would be much more likely to succeed compared with the disastrous Sprint+Nextel marriage, which, like the pending T-Metro marriage, is based on each marriage partner practicing a different and incomparable signal transmission religion.

Jon notes that even if the T-Metro marriage is consummated, the new shared life of those partners will be distracting early on in their new union, opening the door for Sprint (and Leap Wireless) to push forward. My gut feeling is that a consummated marriage between T-Mobile+MetroPCS will prompt a Sprint+Leap marriage.

Read Jon’s report by clicking here: Hello, Hello, Hallo – Thoughts on Potential DT/PCS Tie-Up.

Jonathan

If the Tower Doesn’t Grow, Can Municipalities Say No?

Posted on April 22, 2012April 23, 2012 by Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer

John Pestle of Varnum and I have been invited to speak on this month’s T-Mobile’s National External Affairs Headliner Speaker Series. This is a monthly conference call/webinar with hundreds of internal and external T-Mobile executives, managers, line-level staff, and outside contractors.

The title of our lecture, thought up by T-Mobile, is “If the Tower Doesn’t Grow, Can Municipalities Say No?”

The conference call is scheduled for Wednesday, April 25th at 11am PST/2pm EST.

If you’re invited, you should already have the call-in information. If not, you’ll have to contact External Affairs to get it.

This should be fun! I have lots of slides to share.

Heck, I’ve always wanted to be a headliner!

(Added 4/23 at 8:50 a.m. PDT: I’ve received several questions asking if non-T-Mobiler’s can sit in on the call. The answer is that I wish I could say yes. This is a closed webinar, so you’ll have to ask your contact at T-Mobile External Affairs whether you can join in. -jlk)

Actual Complaint: U.S. v. AT&T/T-Mobile

Posted on August 31, 2011 by Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer

Attached to this post is the antitrust complaint filed today by the U.S. Department of Justice against AT&T Inc., T-Mobile USA, Inc., and Deutsche Telekom AG (T-Mobile’s parent).

Case No. 1:11-cv-01560, assigned to Hon. Ellen S. Huvelle

25 pages.

CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW TO DOWNLOAD THE COMPLIANT IN PDF FORMAT (about 1 MB)

ATT_Tmobile_Complaint

Oh Thank Heaven for T-Mobile Burners at 7-Eleven

Posted on August 6, 2011 by Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer

Attention TracFone, you now have more competition trying to knock you down from the top of the heap as the ‘burner phone‘ provider of choice…T-Mobile.

T-Mobile USA, Inc. and 7-Eleven, Inc. have jointly announced that you can now buy a prepaid T-Mobile burner phone (with no term contracts, thank you very much) 7-Eleven® stores.

What’s better is that T-Mobile’s prepaid plans and services that run on its nationwide 4G network. That means faster throughput for T-Mobile’s new burner customers including, ah, commercial activities such as independent pharmaceutical sales, and controlled detonations.

As early as 1994, 7-Eleven recognized its customers’ desire for affordable, no term contract airtime, began offering prepaid cards in 1994.

Starting just a few days ago (Aug. 1) 7-Eleven began offering its customers T-Mobile prepaid handset, the LG GS170 for a mere $29.99 (plus taxes and fees, of course)

According to T-Mobile…

the LG GS170 offers an intuitive user interface with one-touch speakerphone, large visible keys and a high-resolution color display. In addition, the LG GS170 features a VGA camera, MP3 ringtone capability, Bluetooth® 2.1, text and picture messaging capability, and email support packaged in a sleek, pocket-size design

“Industry projections indicate that prepaid service will continue its growth trajectory and is expected to comprise a significant portion of the wireless market within the next several years,” said Amy McCune, vice president of national retail for T-Mobile USA. “We believe 7-Eleven’s customers who seek accessibility and convenience will love this prepaid phone. They can expect to receive the high-quality customer service and access to a nationwide 4G network that T-Mobile users have come to expect.”

T-Mobile will offer a $50-per-month plan with unlimited talk, unlimited text and unlimited Web with no overage charges and the first 100 MB of data at up to 4G speeds, but why would true burner customers want to tie themselves down to such things.

Jesus Delgado-Jenkins, 7-Eleven’s senior vice president of merchandising, marketing and logistics knows how valuable prepaid burner cards are to his organization: “To give you an idea of how many prepaid transactions we conduct, consider that if all the prepaid cards sold on an average day at 7-Eleven stores were placed end to end, they would span more than 30 football fields.”

And don’t expect too much from the LG GS170. As of the time I wrote this, the T-Mobile LG GS170 showed that only “15 out of 49(31%)customers would recommend this product.”

Oh well.

Oh Thank Heaven!

CPUC Investigates Allegations of T-Mobile Sites Without Permits

Posted on August 30, 2008 by Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer

As reported by staff writer Seth Rosenfeld in the San Francisco Chronicle (Aug 30, 2008, Page C-1), the California Public Utiltiies Commission is investigating whether T-Mobile has been constructing cell sites in Northern California without following local building laws.

The article quotes Susan Carothers, a CPUC spokesperson who said, “CPUC staff is looking into allegations concerning T-Mobile cell siting.”

This isn’t the first time the CPUC has investigated wireless carriers for putting up sites sans all required local permits. In 1993, the Commission levied fines of up to $4,370,000 against other carriers for violating the terms of city building permits.

It appears that Glotel, the London-based international technology staffing and projects company with U.S. headquarters in Chicago, will be a target of the CPUC’s investigation. Two former employees of Glotel were quoted in the Chronicle article, one of whom said that the activities being investigated by the CPUC “…happened every day” and specifically identified these activities occurring in Marin, San Franicsco, San Matel, and Santa Clara counties. Brian Lynch, the other Glotel employee quoted in the article, said he was fired when he told Glotel that they were not following the proper process.

Stay tuned…this should be interesting! Here is a link to the original story at SFGATE.com.

=Jonathan=

Itll cst u mor 2 txt on tmbl

Posted on July 5, 2008 by Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer

T-Mob is razing noplan txting fe on 8-29. The nu chg is 20 cts pr msg if u go ovr the alotd nbr of msgs in ur bse plan. O joy.

jlk

T-Mobile sues City of San Bernardino, California

Posted on April 4, 2008 by Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer

T-Mobile (Omnipoint Communications, Inc.) has sued the City of San Bernardino, California alleging violations of 47 U.S.C. 332(c)(7)(B)(iii) and 47 U.S.C. 332(c)(7)(B)(i)(I) of the “Federal Telecommunications Act of 1966 (sic)”, as well as alleging a violation of the U.S. Constitution Supremacy Clause.

The suit, filed by T-Mobile on March 20, 2008, concerns a City denial of a proposed cell site at 1838 West Baseline Street in San Bernardino.

You can read the complaint by clicking on the following link (734 kb PDF)

T-Mobile v. San Bernardino Complaint

Yes, the world really is getting FLATTER.

Posted on February 20, 2008 by Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer

T-Mobile has jumped on the $99.99 flat-rate bandwagon.

Following Verizon’s and AT&T’s lead, T-Mobile has said:

BELLEVUE, Wash., Feb. 19, 2007 – T-Mobile USA, Inc., announces today that it will offer consumers a plan that includes unlimited nationwide wireless calling and unlimited nationwide messaging for $99.99 per month. This offer will be available beginning Thursday, Feb. 21, and will be a great value for new and existing T-Mobile customers.

“T-Mobile is passionate about helping people stick together with those who matter most, and providing them with the best value is one way we help our customers do that,” said Jeff Hopper, vice president, Marketing, T-Mobile USA. “This offering empowers people to communicate as much as they like on their own terms – whether it’s voice, text messaging, picture messaging or IM.”
With this new plan, domestic roaming and long distance charges are included. Unlimited messaging includes text messages (SMS), picture messages (MMS) and instant messages (IM).

T-Mobile also offers its popular myFaves plans — affordable unlimited calling plans suited for a majority of its customers — beginning at just $39.99 per month.More information and qualifying details will soon be available at www.t-mobile.com.

More pressure on MetroPCS, Cricket, etc.

Starbucks to Serve New Wifi Beans

Posted on February 11, 2008 by Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer

AT&T will apparently displace T-Mobile as Starbuck’s WiFi provider of choice.

It’s interesting to note that AT&T will give its broadband and U-Verse customers free access at any WiFi-equipped Starbucks, but that’s apparently not true for AT&T’s wireless customers.

AT&T will also provide a flat rate access to its business class customer as part of the deal, and Starbuck’s 100,000 “Partners” (huh?) will get free access at company-owned stores.

Starbucks gets what appears to be an AT&T-managed network to the stores. This will, no doubt, make POS transaction and ordering information immediately available to Seattle HQ.

AT&T’s Press Release:

More Than 12 Million AT&T, Starbucks Customers to Get Free Wi-Fi Access for a Rich In-Store Experience

New Offering Includes Two Hours of Free Wi-Fi Service Per Day for Starbucks Card Holders Beginning this Spring

All 100,000 U.S.-Based Starbucks Partners to Receive Free Wi-Fi at Starbucks Stores

Seattle, Washington, San Antonio, Texas, February 11, 2008

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) and Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) today announced plans to deliver AT&T Wi-Fi^SM service at more than 7,000 company-operated Starbucks locations across the United States. The initiative brings together two of the most recognizable global brands to create a powerful and convenient online experience for consumers and business customers. Starbucks and AT&T will offer a mix of free and paid Wi-Fi offerings at Starbucks stores to meet the needs of both frequent and occasional Starbucks Wi-Fi customers.

The initiative further expands the AT&T Wi-Fi network, already the largest in the United States, to more than 17,000 U.S. hot spots and more than 70,000 globally.

Beginning this spring, Starbucks Card holders can enjoy up to two hours of free Wi-Fi service per day at Starbucks locations offering Wi-Fi access, while more than 12 million qualifying AT&T broadband and AT&T U-verse^SM Internet customers will have unlimited free access to the Wi-Fi service. In addition, more than 5 million of AT&T’s remote access services business customers will be able to access Wi-Fi service at Starbucks locations. AT&T will soon extend the benefits of Wi-Fi at Starbucks to its wireless customers.

“People want to stay connected to their world 24/7, and Wi-Fi hot spots, broadband and wireless make that mobility possible,” said Rick Welday, AT&T chief marketing officer, Consumer. “Laptops and smartphones give us the online mobility we crave, and now millions of AT&T and Starbucks customers will get Internet access free from the comfort of their neighborhood Starbucks.”

“This is what our customers have been waiting for — free Starbucks-quality Wi-Fi,” said Chris Bruzzo, chief technology officer, Starbucks Coffee Company. “Through our new partnership with AT&T, we also welcome their millions of current customers who can now come in and enjoy free Wi-Fi as part of their daily Starbucks Experience.”

As an added benefit for the more than 100,000 Starbucks partners in the U.S., all Starbucks partners will receive free AT&T Wi-Fi accounts allowing them to use the network in Starbucks company-operated locations offering Wi-Fi access.

“Our new relationship with AT&T gives us the opportunity to expand and enhance the range of digital entertainment experiences for our customers as well as our partners, including the continued rollout of the iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store at Starbucks,” said Ken Lombard, president, Starbucks Entertainment.

In addition to the free Wi-Fi access for qualifying AT&T customers and any Starbucks Card holder, customers will be able to purchase tiered access to the AT&T Wi-Fi network at Starbucks at attractive price points. For a two-hour period, customers will pay just $3.99 per session. Monthly membership will also be available for $19.99 per month, and will include access to any of AT&T’s 70,000 hot spots in 89 countries around the world.

AT&T business customers who subscribe to remote access services can also enjoy unlimited, flat-rate access plans at any Starbucks location offering Wi-Fi service or at other AT&T Wi-Fi hot spots.

Additionally, AT&T is providing Starbucks an enterprise-class network with increased bandwidth and redundancy. AT&T’s underlying network technologies will enable a wide range of business applications and help Starbucks stores operate more efficiently.

“Delivering networking capabilities to help a world-class company such as Starbucks achieve greater business velocity is what we do,” said Welday. “Our work with Starbucks is collaborative innovation at its finest.”

The availability of AT&T Wi-Fi service at Starbucks will take place on a market-by-market basis with store implementation beginning this spring and completed by the end of the year.

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