Congratulations to AT&T Mobility on winning the number one spot in the Global Wireless Solutions “Best Wireless Network” study. This is the second year in a row that AT&T won this number one ranking and that is quite an accomplishment in the constantly changing, evolving and ultra-competitive wireless industry.
This GWS report is very comprehensive and does a good job showing which carriers are best in a variety of areas, and why. It shows the results of ongoing drive test data and consumer research.
This study looks at everything including voice, video, packet data, coverage, reliability and then creates a score to compare different networks. They also drive nearly one million miles in 501 markets and conduct 9.4 million tests in both urban and rural locations.
This result is this test represents roughly 94 or 95 percent of users in the USA. They also did a poll of roughly 5,000 users about their mobile experience and what is important to them.
I spoke with Igal Elbaz about this study. He is the AT&T Senior Vice President of Wireless Technology. He also pointed to other substantial studies which they lead as well like Ookla and PC Mag.
So, if bragging rights are important in the wireless industry, this GWS study gives AT&T another opportunity to crow and strut their feathers.
Rankings of AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint in “Best Wireless Network” study
Other wireless carriers also did well in different areas. Verizon Wireless came in second in best network category. T-Mobile came in third. Sprint, last.
AT&T has the fastest download speeds.
Verizon has the fastest upload speeds.
T-Mobile showed best quality voice calls.
AT&T has the best data reliability and highest success rate in completing tasks.
They also ranked excellent with voice for call initiations and they had the lowest number of dropped calls.
And also won best video streaming for quality, fastest download, and least rebuffering.
AT&T, AT&T Mobility, WarnerMedia, DirecTV, AT&T TV Now
This is important for AT&T because this is the skill set they need as they rapidly move into television and entertainment with AT&T TV, DirecTV AT&T TV Now, WarnerMedia and more.
The wireless world continues to grow and change. As 5G is just starting to become available in an increasing number of markets, there will be more studies comparing the carriers from best to worst.
Yesterday, all wireless carriers were basically in the same business. Today, while they all offer wireless services, they are also growing in different directions.
Dish Network, Xfinity Mobile, Spectrum Mobile, Altice Mobile
Dish Network may enter the wireless space if they acquire some Sprint and T-Mobile assets to let the merger be approved. Comcast with Xfinity Mobile, Charter with Spectrum Mobile and Altice Mobile are all now in the wireless industry and will make their own impact.
With that kind of activity in wireless, I expect to see more, not less of this kind of activity. Other companies will enter wireless as well in the next decade. Industries like the automotive industry, health care, retail and many others will enter the space.
So, the wireless industry is continuing to change and expand going forward. New technologies, new competitors and a changing industry.
We can expect more of these kinds of studies. They will show the score card at any particular moment in time. This is why every competitor must continue to work hard to get better, year after year. The reason is simple. That’s how to keep your customers happy and that’s how to stay ahead of your competition.
So, congratulations to AT&T on winning top honors in this latest Global Wireless Solutions “Best Wireless Network” study. And congratulations to Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint who are better than last year and that shows the entire industry continues to improve. So, congratulations to the entire wireless industry which keeps getting faster and better, year after year.
Disclosure: Jeff Kagan, like many researchers and analysts, provides or has provided research, analysis, advising, and consulting services to many companies, including AT&T, Sprint, Xfinity Mobile, IBM, PayPal and many others. For more information, as well as a detailed list of clients, visit www.jeffkagan.com. He does not hold equity positions with companies named in this column.
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