SAN ANTONIO – Sprint is looking to expand its LTE footprint with the help of the Competitive Carriers Association membership and an alliance with NetAmerica. The deals, which were announced at this week’s CCA event in San Antonio, look to tap into Sprint’s Network Vision program, the 700 MHz spectrum resources of rural carriers and a growing device ecosystem able to support Band Class 12.
Sprint explained that its deal with CCA will allow the association’s carrier members to tap into CCA’s Data Services Hub as a clearinghouse for reciprocal roaming agreements with Sprint. The carrier will also work with CCA to promote a device ecosystem that will include 700 MHz Band Class 12 support into devices that are also compatible with Sprint’s LTE and CDMA services across the 800 MHz and 1.9 GHz band.
Sprint CEO Dan Hesse initially brought up the Band Class 12 support during a keynote address at last year’s CCA event. Hesse noted at that time that the carrier had conducted LTE roaming trials with regional carrier C Spire, and that it was working with other operators on similar trials.
Sprint added that it would work with device makers to begin implementing Band Class 12 support into some of its devices beginning early next year that would allow rural carriers with lower A-Block 700 MHz spectrum to offer devices that could roam on Sprint’s network. This would in turn allow Sprint customers to roam across the 700 MHz-powered LTE networks of rural operators, providing Sprint with expanded LTE coverage.
Sprint recently announced it had surpassed 200 million potential customers covered by its 1.9 GHz-powered LTE network, though remains approximately one-third behind the LTE coverage of larger rivals Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility.
The Federal Communications Commission recently pushed through rules that would combine Band Class 12, which includes the lower A-, B- and C-Block 700 MHz spectrum licenses, and Band Class 17, which omitted the A-Block. AT&T had pushed the Band Class 17 plan citing claimed interference issues in the A-Block as having an impact on its LTE services using the B- and C-Block.
The Sprint/CCA agreement did not specifically note participation from fellow CCA member T-Mobile US, though CCA President and CEO Steve Berry noted that T-Mobile US was on the data roaming steering committee and an open participant in driving roaming agreements. T-Mobile US also recently announced a deal to acquire a significant chunk of 700 MHz A-Block licenses from Verizon Wireless.
Spectrum leasing
The other component of the announcement was an “alliance” between Sprint and NetAmerica dubbed the Small Market Alliance for Rural Transformation, which will provide CCA members with the ability to lease 800 MHz and 1.9 GHz spectrum from Sprint in markets where the carrier said it did not plan on launching LTE services. In gaining the spectrum resources, rural carriers would agree to build out LTE servies compliant with Sprint’s Network Vision program and include a recipricol roaming agreement.
Carriers taking advantage of the Sprint spectrum will tap into network core services provided by Sprint and NetAmerica. NetAmerica said it expects to begin offering to program immediately to carriers, with deployments expected to begin later this year.
NetAmerica first came onto the rural carrier scene in 2011, when it announced plans to pool the resources of 700 MHz license owners into a larger collective able to generate better pricing on equipment. In addition to that pooling of resources, NetAmerica also offers to own and operate the core of an LTE network for clients, which would allow them to focus on the actual network infrastructure components. The company officially launched services in 2012, and has announced deals with a number of rural operators, including Panhandle Telephone Cooperative and Peoples Telephone Cooperative.
Sprint CTO Stephen Bye explained that the rural carriers would be held to a certain quality level for their service if using Sprint’s spectrum.
CCA President and CEO Steve Berry also pointed out the spectrum leasing agreement was more flexible than a similar offer from Verizon Wireless through its LTE in Rural America program in that the small carrier had more control over how it deployed the network and that it would not be prevented from also using its own spectrum in its markets. CCA remains opposed to Verizon Wireless program, though a number of its member carriers participate in the program.
Sprint’s network drain
Both moves would seem to bolster Sprint’s attempts to better compete with rivals in expanding LTE coverage. Sprint Chairman Masayoshi Son, who is scheduled to provide a keynote address at the CCA event, recently spoke in front of the Washington, D.C. Chamber of Commerce touting Sprint’s ability to help the country improve its broadband infrastructure and speed, tapping into Sprint’s Spark program. Sprint said that program, which taps into its deep 2.5 GHz spectrum holdings, can provide download network speeds in excess of 50 megabits per second. Son noted that Softbank’s mobile broadband network using similar 2.5 GHz spectrum would provide network speeds in excess of 200 Mbps.
Sprint’s Bye did note that the carrier’s 2.5 GHz spectrum was not part of the initial agreements with CCA or NetAmerica. Sprint has said that the Spark network is expected to cover the country’s 100 largest markets over the next three years, though the carrier has said it plans to deploy 2.5 GHz support on all of the approximately 40,000 cell towers that are part of its Network Vision plans.
In looking to shake up the proceedings, Sprint has recently shuffled its executive ranks on the network side. Iyad Tarazi, VP of network technology development and integration, this week reportedly left the company and was replaced by Emerino Marchetti, who is currently VP of engineering and development. Tarazi’s departure followed that of Bob Azzi, former SVP of networks at Sprint, and former president of network operations Steve Elfman. Both reportedly left the company earlier this month.
John Saw was promoted to chief network officer, where he will be reporting directly to Bye. Saw came to Sprint last year as part of the carrier’s acquisition of Clearwire, where Saw was CTO and managed the carrier’s build out of WiMAX services across the 2.5 GHz band. Bye came to Sprint in 2011, following a stint as VP of wireless at Cox Communications.
Sprint’s LTE rollout challenges have been highlighted by the relatively rapid deployment of LTE services by its smaller rival T-Mobile US, which managed to surpass Sprint’s LTE coverage despite starting its network build nearly one year after Sprint.
Bored? Why not follow me on Twitter?
