The company is exchanging spectrum across PCS, AWS, 700MHz, 600MHz, and 2.5GHz bands in numerous locations across the US, per data from Airwave Research shared with Light Reading. The transactions will be mutually beneficial and will allow all three companies to provide better wireless services to their customers than they currently do.
It’s not unusual for wireless companies all over the world to trade licenses with each other to refine their coverage areas and improve network performance.
T-Mobile and AT&T’s deal covers PCS, AWS-1, AWS-3, and 700MHz licenses. Its exchange with Verizon covers AWS, PCS, 600MHz, and 2.5GHz spectrum licenses.
The deals only involve the transfer of spectrum. They don’t involve the exchange of assets or customers.
Many of these transfers will occur in the same markets and involve an even amount of spectrum swap. This means that in most cases, spectrum holdings will not increase. The swaps will enable more efficient operations by ensuring wireless companies have larger, uninterrupted blocks of contiguous spectrum. They will also help companies align spectrum blocks across adjacent markets, potentially reducing interference and improving network performance.
Aligning the spectrum blocks held in adjacent market areas allows the carriers to operate more efficiently by facilitating handoffs when users transition to the adjacent markets. Spectrum alignment also reduces coordination burdens associated with operations at the edge of market boundaries, because the licensee can then operate on the same frequency block in adjacent markets
FCC filing
Operating on contiguous blocks of spectrum allows the carriers to deploy larger channels, providing consumers with access to greater capacity. As a result, the proposed Transaction will allow AT&T and T-Mobile USA to offer more efficient and more reliable mobile wireless broadband services without increasing spectrum concentration in these neutral intramarket exchange Markets.
FCC filing
The deals will not affect any existing services and will essentially be invisible to customers. The FCC has determined after the initial applications that the deals will benefit consumers as more efficient use of spectrum will result in improved service. Any decrease in spectrum holdings will easily be managed through the use of other spectrums.
Overall, the deals will improve the quality of service and enhance wireless competition.
…these assignments – which will not reduce the number of competitors, service offerings or customer choices in any market – do not raise any spectrum aggregation or competitive concerns.
FCC filing
In some markets, T-Mobile‘s spectrum holdings will exceed the allowable limit after the transaction closes, so they will require further review. It’s being noted that despite triggering the screen, the acquisitions “will serve the public interest” and bolster competition.
Ultimately, the spectrum holdings will largely remain unchanged but the transfers will allow AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon to use spectrum more productively. The companies will simply transfer their operations to the newly acquired spectrum.
These transitions thus will be seamless and invisible to retail customers, and there will be no discontinuance, reduction, loss or impairment of service to customers.
FCC filing
This will enable added capacity and improve data throughput speeds within existing coverage areas. Thus, the Transaction will allow both carriers to offer improved services to their customers, thereby enabling each provider to become a stronger competitor.
FCC filing
T-Mobile wants to maximize its holdings, according to the company’s networking chief, Ulf Ewaldsson. The company considers the 24GHz band as the most valuable for its mmWave deployments and will continue to use the band in venues where it wants extra capacity, such as stadiums.
