sprint

Wireless carriers hope they can weather Nemo better than Sandy.

With a massive blizzard hitting the Northeast region just months after superstorm Sandy devastated the area, the carriers are working to avoid the same kind of mass outages that previously struck their networks and left hundreds of thousands of people without service.

AT&T said it has an "arsenal of disaster response equipment and personnel on standby." The company has topped off its fuel generators at various cell sites, installed and tested high-capacity backup batteries, as well as "Quick Connect Generator Plugs," and staged additional … Read more

Sprint Nextel is in for a massive overhaul.

The nation's third-largest wireless carrier will finally rid itself of the Nextel albatross -- both the service and the name -- by the end of the first half of the year. It will merge with SoftBank, giving it access to cash to speed its network deployment. It will also acquire full control of Clearwire, giving the company the best spectrum position in the nation, according to one industry official.

The changes represent a massive identity shift for Sprint, and one that brings hope and optimism to the company and its leadership. … Read more

Sprint Nextel won't be abandoning its unlimited data plan or current pricing structure any time soon.

The company isn't considering any changes to its current offering, CEO Dan Hesse said during a conference call with investors today.

"We always reserve the right to make changes, but we are not anticipating any," Hesse said.

Over the past few years, Sprint has stuck to the unlimited smartphone data plan even as larger rivals such as AT&T and Verizon Wireless moved to plans with limits and family-style data bundles. Hesse considers the unlimited offering to be Sprint'… Read more

Sprint probably can't wait to excise the Nextel part of its business.

The Overland Park, Kan., wireless carrier reported hefty fourth-quarter subscriber losses on the Nextel side, with more than 1 million customers leaving the service, easily offsetting the gains made on its core Sprint business. In total, it lost 337,000 net customers.

Sprint posted a loss of $1.32 billion, or 44 cents a share, compared with a year-ago loss of $1.3 billion, or 43 cents a share. Revenue, however, rose to $9 billion.

The results were better than expected. Analysts, on average, forecast a per-share … Read more

Sprint Nextel played the field a bit before committing to a merger with SoftBank, according to a merger proxy document filed by Sprint this week with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The nation's third-largest wireless carrier had discussions with at least four companies, though the specific names weren't revealed.

The wheeling and dealing underscores the trend toward industry consolidation, spurred partly by competition, as well as by the need for more wireless spectrum. Sprint, in particular, was in both a financial and spectrum bind prior to the SoftBank deal.

Before the SoftBank deal, Sprint had discussions with "… Read more

Clearwire continues to like Sprint's buyout offer, but isn't ruling out a bid from Dish Networks just yet.

In a "Transaction Update" released today, Clearwire said that its Special Committee charged with determining the value of both Sprint's and Dish's offers "has not made any determination to change its recommendation of the current Sprint transaction." That said, the committee added that it will continue to hold discussions with Dish, "as appropriate," to make a final determination.

Sprint Nextel last year announced plans to acquire the remaining 50 percent of Clearwire … Read more

The U.S. Department of Justice has asked the Federal Communications Commission to defer a proposed deal in which Japan-based Softbank would acquire a 70 percent stake in Sprint.

In a letter sent to the FCC and dated yesterday, attorney advisor Jennifer Rockoff, with the Justice Department's National Security Division, asked that the deal be put on ice for now.

The DOJ, the Department of Homeland Security, and the FBI "are currently reviewing this matter for any national security, law enforcement, and public safety issues but have not yet completed that effort," she wrote. &… Read more

If you subscribe to the belief that bigger is always better, even (or especially) when it comes to smartphones, you've no doubt lusted after the Samsung Galaxy Note 2.

But the $249.99 price tag? Ouch. Thankfully, there's a less ouchy option: For a limited time (this deal went live yesterday, so it may well expire today), Amazon has the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 with 4G LTE for $99.99 shipped. Of course, that requires a two-year service agreement, and unfortunately it's for new Sprint customers only.

If you're adding a line of service with this … Read more