Sprint Nextel’s femtocell to go nationwide

Sprint Nextel Corp. will expand its femtocell offering nationwide in the coming weeks, the company said today.
The carrier’s Airave – essentially a small network base station for the home that connects to DSL or cable lines – will sell to consumers for $100 apiece. A recurring service charge of $5 per month is required. The carrier will also offer an optional, unlimited calling plan, priced at an additional $10 per individual or $20 for families already on Sprint Nextel’s network.
Sprint Nextel was the first out of the femtocell gate in the United States; the carrier in September introduced its Airave femtocell from Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. for $50 along with a monthly fee. When the Airave launched, it was only available in Denver and Indianapolis. The carrier expanded distribution to Nashville in October.
The device-and-service package can be viewed as part of a larger push for fixed-mobile convergence, particularly in the consumer space. Carriers such as AT&T Mobility and Verizon Wireless, and vendors such as Qualcomm Inc., have also exhibited interest in femtocells.
Sprint Nextel is touting the device-and-service package as a coverage enhancer and as a value for those who rely solely on mobile service in the home or home office. The service works with any Sprint Nextel phone (but not devices running on Nextel’s iDEN service), which the carrier implicitly contrasted with Wi-Fi-based services such as T-Mobile USA’s HotSpot@Home service, which requires a Wi-Fi-equipped handset.
The Airave unit allows up to three callers to simultaneously use the service.
The drivers for the launch are diverse, according to network analyst Peter Jarich at Current Analysis.
“It’s Sprint,” Jarich said. “The carrier has to do something unique and compelling to retain and attract subscribers. Beyond that, the femtocell offering solves two basic issues: improved in-house coverage and cheap calls.”
“It comes down to what has always been said about the consumer’s approach to wireless service,” the analyst said. “Look at your own situation and see what makes sense for you.”
Boosting in-home coverage can be a worthy value proposition, but because it calls attention to cellular networks’ drawbacks in penetrating buildings, carriers promoting femtocells may need to find more forward-looking applications that grab consumers’ attention, Jarich said. Unlimited calling plans are common, too, he added.
Whether consumers “get it” in sufficient numbers and find that the package really works for them will determine uptake, according to Jarich. One possible scenario: If a family uses different network providers and has poor in-home coverage, it might be cost-effective to settle on Sprint Nextel and use the Airave service.
The advantage to Sprint Nextel itself is perhaps more clear, the analyst said. Femtocells will help ease traffic on Sprint Nextel’s network and patches over holes in network coverage.