ORLANDO, Fla. – The world’s wireless attention shifted back to the United States and the CTIA Wireless 2011 event following its yearly start in Las Vegas at the Consumer Electronics Show in January and Mobile World Congress event held in February in Barcelona, Spain.
While it seemed that all of the news that could be announced had already been announced, the industry still had a few tricks up its sleeve. Most of the news at this year’s CTIA event was somewhat overshadowed by the news prior to the show that AT&T Inc. was looking to acquire T-Mobile USA Inc. for $39 billion, a move that if approved is set to dramatically alter the domestic wireless landscape.
Many on site agreed to an extent with AT&T Mobility that the deal was an attempt to procure additional spectrum assets to help the operator keep up with mobile data demands as well as extend the range of its planned LTE rollout. But, for those operators lacking the deep pockets of an AT&T, others noted there were other ways to garner network efficiencies.
Perhaps the show’s most memorable event was the opening day keynote that involved a roundtable format with the CEOs from Verizon Wireless, AT&T Mobility and Sprint Nextel Corp. and was hosted by CNBC’s Jim Cramer. (T-Mobile USA was also scheduled to participate, but backed out at the last minute.) The event was standing room only and with the previous weekend’s events, had a tinge of electricity that these events have sometimes lacked.
Carrier news
While AT&T Mobility was seen as the obvious winner from the announcement, others noted that while Sprint Nextel could be seen as a potential loser, the move could actually help the industry’s No. 3 carrier solidify its position in the market.
One issue that remains clouded for Sprint Nextel is its current relationship with Clearwire Corp., in which it owns a controlling stake as well as relies on for its “4G” service offering. Clearwire’s newly named CFO Hope Cochran provided some insight into that relationship as well as Clearwire’s expansion plans.
Despite being nearly absent from the event following the proceeding weekend’s news, T-Mobile USA did announce expansion plans for its HSPA+ service that included more markets and higher speeds.
T-Mobile USA also won some accolades from research firm Compete Inc., which noted that the carrier ranks very high in the minds of consumers when it comes to the term “4G.”
Leap Wireless International Inc. filled in its LTE intentions that include the rolling out of service in select markets beginning later this year as well as a roaming agreement with LightSquared for nationwide coverage.
Speaking of LightSquared, the soon-to-launch carrier snared a keynote spot with company CEO Sanjiv Ahuja taking the stage to extol the benefits of LightSquared’s planned wholesale-only, satellite/terrestrial-based LTE network.
Verizon Wireless had a fairly low-key presence at CTIA this year, which was understandable considering all the noise it made at CES in launching LTE devices as well as the addition of Apple Inc.’s iPhone to its lineup. The carrier did manage to announce more markets set for LTE expansion.
Providing the event an international flair, China Telecom Corp. Ltd. EVP Yang Jie also spoke during a keynote address where he touted the carrier’s plans to bolster its wireless offering as well as the growing potential in the Chinese mobile market.
During an opening keynote address, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski touched on mostly previously announced initiatives, but did provide a few new hints about where he stands on data roaming; he wants it.
Devices shine, in 3-D!
While Sprint Nextel has its hands full comprehending its new position in the market, the carrier remained aggressive on the device front using a lavish event to unveil new devices from HTC Corp., including a 3-D smartphone and tablet device, as well as a new Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. model sporting Google Inc.’s latest 2.3 version of its Android operating system.
In a separate event, Samsung also added to its tablet arsenal, rolling out a “just right-sized” 8.9-inch device that slots in between its previously launched 7-inch and 10.1-inch models.
T-Mobile USA announced a handful of new devices as well as launch plans for previously announced models.
Leap also showed off some of the new devices it expects to launch in the coming months, with a heavy emphasis on smartphones that have proven a compelling option for the carrier.
Kyocera Wireless Corp. also provided more face time with its soon-to-launch Echo device that
sports two screens.
Network(ed)
Network infrastructure giant Ericsson AG ran out its CEO Hans Vestberg for a keynote address where he laid out three forces the company thinks will drive “the networked society.” The company also announced plans to launch a wireless innovation program designed to connect innovators, application developers, entrepreneurs, device manufacturers, vertical service providers and operators in an attempt to support the network society.
Nokia Siemens Networks was eager to talk about its Liquid Radio network architecture, which directs broadband capacity to where the network needs that extra capacity.
Odds and ends
–Vertical markets also grab some headlines from the event with healthcare initiatives gaining a place during a keynote address as well as with further talk on the show floor.
—CTIA released its semi-annual survey of wireless operators that confirmed what the industry already knows: Americans are in love with their wireless devices, and using them more and more for data connections.
— Also on the topic of spectrum, the push continues to tap into currently underused spectrum bands that could follow the model the FCC used for white-spaces spectrum.
