Regional wireless operator C Spire launched LTE services in a handful of markets across Mississippi today, with plans to offer service in 37 markets by the end of the year.
C Spire noted that the initial offering covers McComb, Brookhaven, Meridian and Greenville, Miss., which includes 2,700 square miles and 1.2 million potential customers. The carrier noted the launch includes 364 cell sites and data speeds up to 10-times faster than the carrier’s CDMA-based 3G offering.
In support of the launch, C Spire is initially offering Motorola’s Photon Q smartphone, which it’s selling for $200 with a two-year contract. The carrier noted it will be offering Samsung’s Galaxy S3 smartphone and a wireless modem from Franklin Wireless “soon.”
Service pricing looks to mimic what the carrier charges for its 3G-based services, with data-included plans ranging from $60 to $100 per month depending on voice calling and messaging options.
C Spire earlier this year updated its LTE launch plans that initially had the carrier scheduled to offer services before the end of 2011. The carrier had picked up A- and B-Block 700 MHz spectrum licenses during a government auction in 2008, but has so far not discussed what spectrum it was using for its LTE service. Sprint Nextel is currently the only other carrier offering the Photon Q device for its LTE network, which is using its G-Block 1.9 GHz spectrum, which could be an indication that C Spire is using its 1.9 GHz spectrum for its LTE offering.
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