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Tag: Deutsche Telekom

  • EU Telcos: ‘There Would Be No Netflix, Google Without Us’

    EU Telcos: ‘There Would Be No Netflix, Google Without Us’

    The battle over who will pay for EU infrastructure upgrades is heating up, with the telcos saying Big Tech owes them.

    The EU is looking to the future and trying to determine how critical network infrastructure will be funded. One of the leading proposals involves charging Big Tech companies, especially those responsible for the bulk of traffic, to help fund the upgrades. Needless to say, such a proposal is not popular with the tech industry.

    In a statement to CNBC, however, Michael Trabbia, chief technology and innovation officer for France’s Orange, makes the case that Big Tech companies wouldn’t enjoy the success they do without the telecom operators.

    “Without the telcos, without the network, there is no Netflix, there is no Google,” said Trabbia.

    Similarly, Deutsche Telekom CEO Tim Hoettges asked why Big Tech couldn’t “at least a little bit, contribute to the efforts and the infrastructure which we are building here in Europe.”

    The proposal is just the latest challenge Big Tech is facing amid growing antitrust scrutiny, privacy, and security concerns.

  • Deutsche Telekom Gains Larger Share of T-Mobile US

    Deutsche Telekom Gains Larger Share of T-Mobile US

    Deutsche Telekom is continuing its goal of direct control over T-Mobile US, increasing its stake in the carrier by 5.3%.

    Deutsche Telekom is the largest shareholder in T-Mobile US, but comes up short of majority control. To bolster its share, Deutsche Telekom brokered a share-swap deal with Softbank. As the owner of Sprint, Softbank gained a stake in T-Mobile when the magenta carrier purchased its smaller rival.

    According to Reuters, Deutsche Telekom and Softbank’s share-swap gives Deutsche Telekom an additional 5.3% stake in T-Mobile US, in exchange for Softbank taking a 4.5% stake in Deutsche Telekom.

    Deutsche Telekom’s CEO Tim Hoettges wants to own a majority share of T-Mobile US, and this latest deal gets him to 48.4%. Hoettges’ ambitions are not surprising, given T-Mobile’s status in the US market. Once the undisputed underdog, the company has vaulted to the number two position and has a commanding lead in the US 5G market, a lead many experts expect it to maintain for years to come.

    Separately, Deutsche Telekom sold T-Mobile Netherlands to private equity houses for $6.05 billion, shedding a non-core asset and further streamlining the company.

  • Walmart Making Digital Vaccine Records Available to Customers

    Walmart Making Digital Vaccine Records Available to Customers

    Walmart is the latest company pushing for digital vaccine records as a way for people to prove they have received the COVID-19 vaccination.

    As the US and the world move to reopen and return to normal, vaccinations are seen as the key ingredient to making that happen. Many experts believe, however, that a form of vaccination passport is necessary for people to be able to prove they have been vaccinated. Such a passport could be required for airline travel, crossing borders, entering crowded events and more.

    Different companies and governments have already begun implementing their own solutions. Deutsche Telekom recently submitted a bid to develop a digital vaccine passport for the EU.

    Walmart is the latest company to move in that direction, the largest US vaccination provider to yet do so. The company announced it is partnering with The Commons Project Foundation and CLEAR to make customers’ vaccination records available to them digitally as proof of their vaccination.

    “Our goal is to give customers vaccinated at Walmart free and secure digital access to their vaccine record and enable them to share that information with third parties seeking to confirm their vaccination status,” said John Furner, CEO and President, Walmart U.S. “We are proud to be the first retailer to strategically partner with both The Commons Project Foundation and CLEAR, and we look forward to working with them to empower people with digital access to their vaccination records so they can use them whenever and however they choose.”

    Given Walmart’s size and clout, it’s a safe bet their action will put pressure on other companies, not to mention the government, to follow suit.

  • Deutsche Telekom Bidding on EU Vaccination Passport

    Deutsche Telekom Bidding on EU Vaccination Passport

    T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom has submitted a bid to create a digital vaccination passport for the EU.

    One of the biggest challenges countries face is managing travel during the pandemic. International travel helped the coronavirus spread at a record pace in the early days of the pandemic, and continues to be a major threat to containment efforts.

    Some countries have made vaccination a requirement to cross their borders, but there is currently no good way to keep track of who has been vaccinated. The issue is especially a concern for the EU, where individuals are normally able to cross member state borders at will.

    Deutsche Telekom is hoping to help address the problem, submitting a bid to the German government to create a digital vaccination passport. A vaccination passport would serve as proof the holder was vaccinated, and therefore relatively safe to travel.

    If the EU’s efforts are successful, it’s a safe bet other countries will follow suit, implementing their own methods for keeping track of those vaccinated.

  • Deutsche Telekom Working to Deploy Aerial Base Stations

    Deutsche Telekom Working to Deploy Aerial Base Stations

    Deutsche Telekom has successfully completed a test of aircraft-mounted 4G antennas, in an effort to improve coverage.

    One of the biggest challenges carriers face is providing coverage in remote areas. In some cases, the terrain, population density and zoning issues can make it difficult to deploy cell towers in some regions.

    Deutsche Telekom is turning to aerial antennas on unmanned aircraft to close the gap. According to Reuters, the company just completed its first successful test, with an aerial base station connecting to the ground network from 45,000 feet in the air.

    “We won’t stop until everyone is connected,” said Deutsche Telekom CEO Tim Hoettges. “A stratospheric network can help reach areas that have been difficult to supply up to now.”

    Deutsche Telekom is partnering with British startup Stratospheric Platforms to create an unmanned aircraft that will run on hydrogen fuel-cells and stay in the air for up to nine days. Although the initial test was completed using a modified prop plane, since the final unmanned craft is not completed yet, the companies plan on deploying the new platform in 2024.

  • Huawei Losing Ground as Deutsche Telekom and Bell Canada Choose Ericsson

    Huawei Losing Ground as Deutsche Telekom and Bell Canada Choose Ericsson

    Huawei has been shut out of some high-profile 5G contracts, as both Deutsche Telekom and Bell Canada have gone with Ericsson.

    Huawei has faced increasing pressure worldwide as the US has led a campaign to shut the Chinese firm out of the 5G market. Huawei is already banned in the US, and officials have been working to get their allies to follow suit.

    Australia and New Zealand have similarly banned Huawei from participation in their 5G networks. The UK initially decided to allow the company to participate in a limited role, although recent events are forcing the British government to reconsider. Canada, on the other hand, has remained largely undecided.

    Bell Canada, however, has decided to exclude Huawei, inking a deal with Ericsson instead.

    “Ericsson plays an important role in enabling Bell’s award-winning LTE network and we’re pleased to grow our partnership into 5G mobile and fixed wireless technology,” said Stephen Howe, Chief Technology Officer, Bell Canada. “5G’s high-capacity and near-instant connections will enable next-generation applications like mobile 4K video and immersive augmented reality, connected vehicles and industrial IoT automation on a massive scale, and our plan is to deliver the benefits of the 5G wireless revolution to cities and rural locations alike.”

    Similarly, Deutsche Telekom has also selected Ericsson for its network in Germany.

    “We listened to Deutsche Telekom and understood their urgency to have 5G-ready infrastructure in order to stay at the forefront of customer service in Germany,” said Arun Bansal, President and Head of Ericsson in Europe and Latin America. “We can run multiple standards on the same baseband hardware and a 5G upgrade will be able to be performed by a simple software download to the radio sites. And, during these deliveries, we will use the experience from our 5G activities around the world to be sure that Deutsche Telekom has the most advanced hardware and software in the industry.”

    These are undoubtedly big losses for Huawei and further isolates the company in its efforts to be a leader in the 5G market.

  • T-Mobile and Sprint Reach New Merger Agreement

    T-Mobile and Sprint Reach New Merger Agreement

    Following their court win allowing their proposed merger to move forward, T-Mobile and Sprint have come to new terms.

    In the aftermath of their court victory, it was reported that T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom was renegotiating the terms of the deal as a result of how much Sprint had dropped in value since the original deal was struck. When asked about it, CEO Timotheus Hottges declined to comment on any internal negotiations.

    The two companies have successfully completed negotiations, with Deutsche Telekom taking a 43% stake in the new company, up from 42%. Meanwhile, Sprint parent SoftBank will have 24%, with the remaining 33% held by public shareholders.

    “Today’s announcement is another significant step forward toward finally closing this transaction! Throughout this journey, T-Mobile and Sprint have been singularly focused on one thing: building a supercharged Un-carrier that will offer U.S. consumers a broad and deep nationwide 5G network, more choice and greater competition. We are now on the threshold of achieving our goal. And did I mention how fun it’s going to be sticking it to Dumb, Dumber and Big Cable along the way? This is going to be epic!” said John Legere, CEO of T-Mobile.

    “With today’s agreement in place, we are now turning our attention toward our goal of closing this transaction and creating the New T-Mobile as early as April 1, 2020,” said Mike Sievert, COO and President of T-Mobile, and appointed CEO of the company starting on May 1, 2020. “We are on the verge of being able to do what we’ve set out to do from day one — reshape a broken wireless industry and create the new standard for consumers when it comes to value, speed, quality and service. The New T-Mobile is literally going to change wireless for good and now we’re almost ready to get to the fun part: bringing our teams together, building this supercharged Un-carrier and becoming the envy of the wireless industry and beyond!”

  • Deutsche Telekom CEO Promises the ‘Best 5G Network’

    Deutsche Telekom CEO Promises the ‘Best 5G Network’

    Timotheus Hottges, CEO of T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom left no room for ambiguity regarding the company’s 5G plans.

    In an interview with CNBC, Hottges was asked about the ongoing merger negotiations following the court victory allowing it to move forward. There have been multiple reports that Deutsche Telekom was renegotiating Sprint’s price, given how much the company had dropped since the deal was initially made.

    Although Hottges could not comment on internal negotiations, he was very optimistic about the future of his company’s 5G rollout and the benefits of the T-Mobile/Sprint merger.

    “This is a unique story. And for us…that is the biggest transaction ever made from a German company in the U.S.,” said Hottges. “This is…the biggest transaction in the telco space over the last ten years.

    “And this is creating super relevant impact for customers. We’re going to build the best 5G network. We’re going to have double the amount of spectrum, so we can be very aggressive on pricing and on AT&T and Verizon, perspectively.

    “And, on top of that, it’s creating 43 billion of synergies, bringing the two networks of Sprint and T-Mobile together. So this is creating a lot of, let’s say, possibilities for us and we are intrigued by the strategic benefits of this this transaction.”

    Based on Hottges’ comments, it seems T-Mobile’s aggressive pricing and customer-first attitude aren’t going away anytime soon.

  • Deutsche Telekom Renegotiating Sprint Deal

    Deutsche Telekom Renegotiating Sprint Deal

    T-Mobile and Sprint may have been cleared for their merger by U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero, but T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom may be going back to the drawing board in some respects.

    Sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that Deutsche Telekom is looking to renegotiate the price of Sprint, given that its value has fallen from where it was when terms were first agreed upon. The news is not unexpected given Sprint’s current position in the market, as the fourth largest carrier has continued to bleed subscribers.

    In fact, one of the arguments the companies made in their court case was that, without a merger, Sprint would not have the ability to continue forward as a national carrier. Instead, it would likely have to abandon a number of markets and settle for being a regional carrier.

    Given the situation, it’s unlikely Sprint parent SoftBank will put up too much of a fight, although there are no guarantees. SoftBank founder and CEO Masayoshi Son ended the previous round of merger negotiations in 2017 because of a dispute over which company should have the controlling interest in a combined T-Mobile. In spite of the fact that Sprint was already losing ground and T-Mobile’s future was looking brighter than ever, Son wanted SoftBank to have the controlling interest in the merged company, not Deutsche Telekom.

    Considering how far Sprint has fallen, however, Son may not have much room to negotiate this time around.

  • MWC Barcelona Canceled Amid Coronavirus Fears

    MWC Barcelona Canceled Amid Coronavirus Fears

    The annual Mobile World Congress (MWC) Barcelona has been cancelled amid growing concerns about the coronavirus.

    MWC is one of the premier trade shows for the telecoms industry, organized by GSMA and focusing on the mobile industry. As the date for this year’s conference drew close, however, fears of the coronavirus began to dominate discussion, leading several of the most important supporters of MWC to announce their withdrawal from this year’s show. According to Reuters, Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone, BT and Nokia were some of the latest companies to pull out.

    For many companies, the cancelation will have far-reaching consequences. Many vendors, especially smaller ones, without the name-brand clout of Samsung, rely on MWC to make a splash with their newest phones or devices. With the trade show canceled, those companies will have to find other ways to debut their products.

    The GSMA statement announcing the decision said the group is working toward the 2021 and future conferences, and extended sympathies to those impacted by the virus in China and around the world.

    This is just the latest example of the far-reaching impact of the coronavirus, as the death toll and infection rate continues to climb.

  • Deutsche Telekom Continuing With Multi-Vendor Equipment Approach

    Deutsche Telekom Continuing With Multi-Vendor Equipment Approach

    According to Reuters, Deutsche Telekom is not wavering in its approach to purchasing telecom equipment, continuing to a favor a multi-vendor approach.

    This is in direct contradiction to a report in magazine Wirtschaftswoche, whereby the publication claimed that Deutsche Telekom would be gradually phasing out equipment made by Huawei. While the company refused to directly comment on the Wirtschaftswoche article, a spokesman did say in an email to Reuters that “fundamentally, we are pursuing a multi-vendor strategy and source network components from several vendors. Security comes first.”

    Germany has proven to be a hotly contested battleground for Huawei, as the U.S. has increasingly put pressure on the German government to ban the telecom equipment provider. Even members of Merkel’s own party have joined the calls for ban. Merkel herself, however, has ruled out a ban, believing security can be achieved without singling out any one vendor.

    Deutsche Telekom’s decision is another win for Huawei as it struggles to maintain its dominance in the 5G arena.

  • T-Mobile CEO John Legere Stepping Down In 2020

    T-Mobile CEO John Legere Stepping Down In 2020

    Few executives have had such an impact on their companies as T-Mobile’s CEO John Legere. During his time with the company, T-Mobile more than doubled its subscriber base, went from fourth to third place in the country and negotiated the pending acquisition of Sprint.

    Now, according to a company press release, Legere will step down as CEO when his contract expires on April 30, 2020, handing the reins to current COO Mike Sievert.

    “John Legere has had an enormously successful run as CEO. As the architect of the Un-carrier strategy and the company’s complete transformation, John has put T-Mobile US in an incredibly strong position. I have the highest respect for his performance as a manager and as a friend, I am very grateful to him for the time together,” said Tim Höttges, Deutsche Telekom CEO, and Chairman of the Board of T-Mobile US.

    Legere will remain on T-Mobile’s Board after stepping down. In the meantime, his focus will be on concluding the Sprint acquisition.

    “I hired Mike in 2012 and I have great confidence in him. I have mentored him as he took on increasingly broad responsibilities, and he is absolutely the right choice as T-Mobile’s next CEO,” said Legere. “Mike is well prepared to lead T-Mobile into the future. He has a deep understanding of where T-Mobile has been and where it needs to go to remain the most innovative company in the industry. I am extremely proud of the culture and enthusiasm we have built around challenging the status quo and our ongoing commitment to putting customers first. Together, these attributes have distinguished T-Mobile in the marketplace and on Wall Street, giving us a powerful business advantage that is instilled throughout every level of T-Mobile. I am confident it will thrive under Mike’s leadership.

    “In the months ahead, my focus will be on ensuring a smooth leadership transition and continuing to work closely with the Board and Mike to complete the Sprint transaction. This merger will create the New T-Mobile – a company that is uniquely positioned to continue disrupting the wireless category – and beyond. This marks the beginning of a dynamic new chapter for T-Mobile.”

  • SoundHound & Deutsche Telekom Form Partnership For Voice-Driven AI Devices

    SoundHound & Deutsche Telekom Form Partnership For Voice-Driven AI Devices

    SoundHound and Deutsche Telekom have announced a partnership between the two companies to help the latter integrate voices services.

    Deutsche Telekom is looking to differentiate itself in the telecom industry by using voice services to complement traditional, manual interfaces, and is determined to provide the best voice experience to its customers.

    SoundHound, long-known for its music recognition app, has become a leading provider of voice-driven AI solutions.

    “SoundHound Inc.’s Houndify Voice AI solutions are designed to help companies deliver better user experiences than manual interfaces — such as keyboards, remote devices and touch screens — while elevating brand images and creating greater connections with customers. As a global provider of customized voice AI solutions, SoundHound Inc. provides multilingual support through our Houndify platform. We currently support 14+ languages including English, German, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, and Portuguese — and we’re adding more all the time.

    “Houndify also gives manufacturers the flexibility to develop a custom wake word and custom domains with access to an extensive library of public domains for everything from weather, to navigation, to music. The platform also allows for the integration of multiple voice assistants to live side-by-side, each with its own wake word.

    “The partnership with Deutsche Telekom deepens SoundHound Inc.’s presence in the telecommunications industry. Recently, SoundHound Inc. partnered with Motorola to integrate the Houndify Voice AI platform into the company’s products, including moto g6, moto g6 plus, moto z3 plan, and moto z3. Houndify’s Voice AI platform brings speed and accuracy to users of Moto Voice when they make calls, send messages, and access information on weather, navigation, sports, and more.”

  • Firefox OS Launches In Poland Tomorrow

    Firefox OS is already out in Spain thanks to Mozilla’s partnership with Telefonica. Now the new mobile OS will be coming to more of Europe with the help of Deutsche Telekom.

    Deutsche Telekom and Mozilla announced today that Firefox OS will launch in Poland on July 12 through T-Mobile. The mobile OS will also be made available in Hungary, Greece and Germany this Autumn.

    “Our cooperation with Mozilla once again demonstrates how we at Deutsche Telekom offer our customers innovative products and services ahead of anyone else,” explained Claudia Nemat, Board member for Europe and Technology at Deutsche Telekom. “With Firefox OS we are expanding our existing portfolio with a new operating system that is open, developer-friendly and reasonably priced.”

    Through Deutsche Telekom, potential Firefox OS customers will be able to get their hands on the Alcatel One Touch Fire. The device comes equipped with a 1.0GHz CPU, a 3.5-inch 320×480 display, 256 MB of RAM and expandable memory up to 32GB. It’s not a powerhouse by any stretch of the imagination, but the phone isn’t meant to be.

    The relatively low power of the device allows T-Mobile Poland to sell the One Touch Fire for 1 zloty, or .30 cents USD. Combined with what it calls a “very attractive tariff” and the One Touch Fire may be the cheapest phone available to Polish cell phone users looking to upgrade to a smartphone.

    “The mobile Internet is now becoming a reality for everyone”, says Christian Stangier, Senior Vice President of Terminal Management at Deutsche Telekom. “With this offer, we’re making smartphones affordable for all our customers. We’re selling the Firefox phone across all customer segments in Poland.”

    With these announcements, it looks like Firefox OS will be in a lot of Europe before the end of the year. Unfortunately, we still have no idea when to expect Mozilla’s new mobile OS in South America, or North America for that matter. Both markets could use a cheap competitor to shake things up, but Mozilla might want to beef up its hardware a little more before launching in more power-conscious markets like the U.S.

  • T-Mobile, MetroPCS Merger Complete

    T-Mobile, MetroPCS Merger Complete

    Deutsche Telekom, the parent company of T-Mobile USA, today announced that the merger of T-Mobile and MetroPCS Communications is complete. The two companies will now be known under the name T-Mobile US, and stock in the company has begun trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol TMUS.

    The new T-Mobile US board of directors will have 11 members, which will include two board members from MetroPCS. Tim Höttges, the CFO of Deutsche Telekom, will be the board’s chairman.

    “The combination of T-Mobile and MetroPCS creates an even stronger disruptive force in the U.S. wireless market,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile US. “Together, as America’s ‘Un-carrier’, we’ll continue our legacy of marketplace innovation by tearing up the old playbook and rewriting the rules of wireless to benefit consumers.”

    The newly rebranded carrier is still the fourth-largest carrier in the U.S. but now has 43 million subscribers, putting it closer to Sprint Nextel’s subscriber numbers. T-Mobile estimates that the companies’ combined 2012 financial results would have reflected $24.8 billion in revenue.

    “By uniting T-Mobile and MetroPCS, we have created a dynamic new player in the wireless industry that has the right strategy and management team in place to compete successfully in today’s marketplace,” said Höttges. “We look forward to realizing the tremendous potential of the new T-Mobile.”

  • MetroPCS T-Mobile Merger Approved By Shareholders

    Back in October, Deutsche Telekom and MetroPCS Communications announced that they had signed an agreement to combine T-Mobile and MetroPCS. The new company would retain the T-Mobile name and branding.

    Today, Reuters reports that MetroPCS shareholders voted to approve the merger after Deutsche Telekom “sweetened its terms under pressure for activist shareholders”.

    Deutsche Telekom reportedly agreed to reduce the combined company’s debt. Lisa Maria Garza reports:

    Activist shareholder P. Schoenfeld Asset Management had led a proxy battle against the original deal, while biggest MetroPCS shareholder Paulson & Co had also threatened to vote against it. Both investors have said they were pleased with the improved terms.

    The percentage of shareholders who voted in favor of the merger is unknown.

    According to Bloomberg, the transaction is likely to be completed by the beginning of May.

  • iPhone Coming to T-Mobile Next Week [RUMOR]

    I know. The rumors about the iPhone coming to T-Mobile have been flying around since the CES expo in January. However, every time the rumor popped up again, it got a little more specific. In May, T-Mobile began making changes to its network that were clearly the groundwork for nationwide 4G LTE, a prerequisite for carrying the iPhone. Last month, the rumor was that T-Mobile might announce the iPhone on its network by “early 2013.”

    Today, Fortune is reporting that a Merrill Lynch analyst has begun spreading the news that “speculation is heightening” of an iPhone announcement by T-Mobile. The speculation surrounds Deutche Telekom, T-Mobile USA’s parent company, announcing the big news at an analyst day next week on December 6. The analyst predicts that T-Mobile could sell around 4 million, increasing Apple revenue by around 1%.

    It’s clear that T-Mobile will eventually be getting the iPhone, though the timing is still up in the air. Ever since the carrier’s acquisition by AT&T was foiled by the U.S. Justice Department last year, T-Mobile has doubled-down on becoming a real competitor to Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint. Though T-Mobile is still the fourth largest U.S. wireless carrier by subscriber numbers, its 4G LTE coverage is expanding rapidly and it’s recent merger with MetroPCS puts its subscriber numbers close to that of Sprint. The company has also appointed a new CEO and new CMO this fall, meaning the company’s direction and marketing are getting a fresh look.

  • Isis Mobile Wallet App is Available – For a Few

    Isis Mobile Wallet App is Available – For a Few

    Isis, the mobile wallet technology that AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile have sunk millions of dollars into over the past year was delayed past its originally planned launch. This week, the service has finally launched – sort of.

    According to a Mobileburn report, the service is only available to a very specific few mobile subscribers. First, the app is only available to T-Mobile customers who have a Samsung Galaxy S III or Galaxy Relay 4G. Second, the app requires a special SIM card and the device must not be rooted. Of the subscribers who meet all of that criteria, only those living in Salt Lake City, Utah or Austin, Texas can get the app. These are the two cities in the Isis pilot program.

    The Isis mobile app is AT&T’s, Verizon’s, and T-Mobile’s answer to Google Wallet and PayPal mobile payments. The service will allow users to complete purchases at participating retailers using their smartphone.

    Though the iPhone 5 did not include NFC capabilities as expected, the mobile payment investments were already in place and multiple services (including one backed by Walmart and Target) will debut over the next year. T-Mobile’s parent company, Deutsche Telekom has been leading the push for mobile payment investment in Europe.

  • T-Mobile Merges With MetroPCS, Still Named T-Mobile

    T-Mobile is still considered one of the for major wireless carriers in the U.S., but it still has a lot of ground to make up if it hopes to catch up to AT&T and Verizon. The failed acquisition of T-Mobile by AT&T proved to actually be a $4 billion windfall for T-Mobile, and it used its newfound billions to begin upgrading its services. While its 4G LTE network is far behind its competitors’ networks, it, along with Sprint, now offer unlimited data plans as a means to compete with AT&T’s and Verizon’s expensive new shared plans.

    Today, T-Mobile parent company Deutsche Telekom and MetroPCS Communications announced that they have signed an agreement to combine T-Mobile and MetroPCS. The new company will retain the T-Mobile name and branding. The combined company will have an estimated 42.5 million subscribers, pulling T-Mobile closer to Sprint’s subscriber numbers, but still leaving it as the fourth-largest wireless carrier in the U.S.

    The agreement is structured as a recapitalization. MetroPCS will declare a 1 for 2 reverse stock split and make a cash payment of $1.5 billion to its shareholders, or about $4.09 per share before the reverse split. MetroPCS will then issue Deutsche Telekom 74% of its common stock, pro forma.

    T-Mobile estimates the combined company will take in around $24.8 billion in revenue in 2012. It also estimated it would bring in $6.3 billion in adjusted earnings, have $4.2 billion in capital expenditures, and have $2.1 billion of free cash flow in 2012.

    “We are extremely pleased to announce this transaction with MetroPCS, which enhances Deutsche Telekom’s position in the expanding U.S. wireless market,” said René Obermann, CEO of Deutsche Telekom. “The T-Mobile and MetroPCS brands are a great strategic fit – both operationally and culturally. The new company will be the value leader in wireless with the scale, spectrum, and financial and other resources to expand its geographic coverage, broaden choice among all types of customers and continue to innovate, especially around the next-generation LTE network. We are committed to creating a sustainable and financially viable national challenger in the U.S., and we believe this combination helps us deliver on that commitment.”

  • T-Mobile Sells Cell Tower Rights For $2.4 Billion

    T-Mobile and Crown Castle International announced today that they have inked an agreement regarding T-Mobile’s cellular network towers. Under the deal, Crown Castle will pay T-Mobile $2.4 billion and acquire the rights to around 7,200 T-Mobile towers for approximately 28 years. Crown Castle will have exclusive rights to lease and operate the towers during that time.

    “We are very pleased with our agreement with T-Mobile, which strengthens our position as the largest provider of shared wireless infrastructure in the US, which we believe is the largest, fastest growing and most profitable wireless market in the world,” said Ben Moreland, Crown Castle president and CEO. “Consistent with our focus on the top 100 US markets, the T-Mobile towers are similarly well-located, with 83% of the towers in the top 100 markets and 72% located in the top 50 markets. The T-Mobile assets are expected to provide significant growth driven by the continued demand for wireless data services, particularly in the most densely populated areas in the US. While this transaction increases our tower count by approximately 33%, the transaction consideration represents only approximately 9% of our enterprise value. Further, we expect the impact from the contemplated transaction and related expected debt financing to be accretive to our 2013 adjusted funds from operations per share and approximately 5% accretive to our long-term adjusted funds from operations per share.”

    The transaction is expected to close during the fourth quarter of 2012. As Moreland mentioned, Crown Castle will finance the deal with cash on hand and with debt financing. The company is currently the largest wireless infrastructure operator in the U.S., operating around 30,000 towers.

    T-Mobile subscribers will be unaffected by today’s deal. The telecom company has committed to maintain its communications facilities on the Crown Castle towners for a minimun of 10 years.

    “We are pleased to reach this mutually beneficial agreement with Crown Castle and take another step closer to realizing the bold vision outlined in our ‘Challenger’ strategy to solidify our competitiveness in the industry by investing in areas where we anticipate the strongest return for our customers,” said John Legere, CEO of T-Mobile USA. “T-Mobile USA is working aggressively to make our 4G network stronger, faster and more dependable for consumers, and this transaction will support our ongoing $4 billion network modernization initiative that is the cornerstone of this effort as we work tirelessly to continue to deliver our amazing 4G services nationwide.”

  • T-Mobile Appoints John Legere as New CEO

    T-Mobile Appoints John Legere as New CEO

    Deutsche Telekom, the parent company of T-Mobile USA, announced today that John Legere has been appointed CEO of T-Mobile.

    “John is a talented and proven executive who brings a successful track record of leading and operating consumer- and business-focused telecommunications and technology companies,” said René Obermann, CEO of Deutsche Telekom. “As T-Mobile moves forward with its strategic initiatives to improve its market position, including expanding its network coverage and initiating LTE service, John has obviously the right skillset to lead the business into the future.”

    Legere is a former CEO of Global Crossing, a former worldwide networking services telecom company. He has also in the past served as CEO of Asia Global Crossing, and senior vice president of EMEA and Asia-Pacific operations at Dell.

    “I am thrilled to join T-Mobile and lead the Company at such a pivotal time,” said Legere. “T-Mobile is taking a number of significant steps to revitalize the business and I look forward to leading our team and partners to accelerate these efforts to become a force in our industry.”

    Both T-Mobile and Sprint are positioning themselves as low-cost alternatives to Verizon and AT&T. Both T-Mobile and Sprint now offer unlimited data plans, in contrast to the more expensive “shared” plans that AT&T and Verizon rolled out this year. Also, T-Mobile has just begun trying to convince Apple fans to buy T-Mobile is in the process of implementing its 4G LTE data network. It will be that last of the major U.S. carriers to have 4G LTE.