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Just got this formal statement in the inbox, folks. T-Mobile have responded to the opposition who do not want to see the transaction go through, stating they have “failed to offer any credible arguments to support their view that the [FCC] should deny the transaction.” Furthermore, they believe it is inaccurate to say that there is no spectrum crisis when the FCC has made moves to free more of it up. And they say T-Mobile’s spectrum will certainly add enhanced innovation and improved service for their customers. They’re likely referring to the switch to 4G LTE that AT&T’s looking to start sometime this summer. There it is, folks. Another day, another statement. It’s up to the FCC to decide whether or not AT&T and T-Mobile truly need each other.
Just let them but T-mobile. Its going to die anyways after losing so many customer last quarter
U are wrong my friend….yes they lost customers so does every other carrier. They might have lost a lot more the last time bcz ppl thought the Att buy out deal was done…so some ppl started heading for the hills cz they want nothing to do with Att. There are always new customers added though the ratio of lost versus added customers vary due to a myraid of circumstances. But i will urge my Tmo brethren not to jump ship yet…the buy out deal is far from done and it may not be approved if rational minds at the FCC see how detrimental it will be to the budget cellphone consumer…those seeking unlimited cellpone plans that don’t nickel and dime them every month. The 34 million or so customers on Tmo love their pricing and also the improved speeds of the network…eventually they will have their own path to LTE not a path that results in them being gobbled up by Att. If DT is so intent on selling Tmo..will prefer to see Google buy and make it a true ANDROID HUB
Deutch Telekom has been trying to rid themselves of T-Mobile USA for years, because T-Mobile hasn’t been able to increase their subscriber base in years. Sprint was the expected buyer for 2 or 3 years but it seems they just couldn’t seal the deal. I’m glad that T-Mobile is at least not being picked apart by market and sold off in pieces.
If TMO was on the block as long as you are saying AT&T wouldn’t have paid twice what TMO is worth . Sprint is to in debt to even consider TMO . They could have never gotten the loan necessary .
Here’s an article from 2005
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/04/deutsche_telecom_mulls_tmobile_usa_sale/
Here’s one from Feb of 2010
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703357104575045542344942342.html
T-Mobile USA ran at a loss for 5 years
http://www.deadzones.com/2011/03/deutsche-telekom-was-losing-money-on-t.html
I neither know nor care why AT&T is paying what they’re paying. But I do know that T-Mobile USA has been having to justify its existence for a long time.
That quote about losses doesn’t seem to jibe with quarterly reports of profits.. I don;t think that last article knows jack.
ugh fuck might as well leave them on principle alone, I will NEVER be an AT&T customer, not even when they are the last provider in the US. I don’t care I will go without.
Tmobile is by far the best provider right now in terms of coverage and customer service. This is a god damn travesty! Edit was trying to reply to @Rocktoonz post, oh well.
How is T-Mo the best in ANY of those? Last time I checked, Verizon has the #1 in customer support and has the most coverage (including REAL 4G)… T-Mo has a lot of catching up to do to make their network anywhere near Big Red. ATT is only closer because of their network reach too.
All I have to say is T-Mobiles 4g is as much 4g as Verizons and its faster.
Please post a ss of a single instance where TMobile users got 40+mbps, hell, post even one where they got over 30, or 20. I can post several of them over 40….
post any real life speed of Verizon 4g that 40 mbps. Test speed don’t count.
Thats like saying that a radar gun doesnt count when verifying the speed of a car. Seriously, just STFU. Especially considering the speeds YOU get on Sprint.
Be better to post those pathetic battery life of ALL LTE VZW phones. lol
Ignorance is bliss, ehh? My Droid Charge is LTE, and it goes 2 days on a charge. And that is with leaving 4G on, lets see anything from Sprint do that.
Then post them or STFU burst speeds don’t count as well WiMax did that at first as well but look at it now.. Also consider this how many 4G phones access LTE vs T-mo…. T-mobile carries its 4G and 3G phone on their 4G network which puts the strain on the network because that means everyone is able to receive increased speeds not just 1 or 2 devices.
Verizon LTE Thunderbolt tetheredhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYVfZbmv34U&hd=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVC10FMD8kg&hd=1
Now, show me one ss of HSPA+ getting those speeds, you can’t, wich goes against the claim it is faster. Now, show me one ss of WiMax getting those speeds when they first launched. You can’t, wich goes against the claim that they got the speeds when launched. BTW, there are more than “1 or 2 devices” on LTE. Ignorance is bliss, heh?
False! If you go by the standard before it was revised Verizon’s LTE wasn’t even considered “real” 4G so quit with that, Verizon does not have best customer service, Most coverage? maybe for 3G but those speeds sucks and t-mobile is the fastest and largest 4G network.
The debate on what REAL 4G stands for could go on until 5G comes out and the cycle will than start again… I only call it real 4G because of the actual speed you can get with ANY device, including smartphones. On T-Mo, there is not one single phone capable of reaching those speeds and their HSPA+ coverage for MiFi’s that get those top speeds is next to nothing. Also, here ya go: http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-20004547-94.html
You must have meant the worste coverage? Because of the big four, that is where they are.
Prob the only one who hopes this goes through. At&t’s data is terribly inconsistent, and I have a company phone. It’s a win for me. Innovation stifled? I suppose so. As long as the Nexus series continues I could care less.
why don’t all carriers just use a single network saving them all money. Then they would have to compete on pricing and phone choice alone which can only be a good thing.
GSM is patent free that’s why it’s widely used across the world however CDMA is NOT. If everyone would jump on GSM it would make a lot more sense in the service world you’re speaking of but on the backend the ability own the rights to the patents are worth, in some instances more than the carriers themselves (metroPCS, virigin mobiles, etc)
GSM died with EDGE… this statement would’ve been useful in 1995 when the debate over 2G digital technologies was being argued…. unfortunately for you, it’s 2011… and GSM has been replaced by W-CDMA, which has been replaced with LTE.
It doesn’t matter what’s being used but the carriers should decide which technology is best and all run that technology on a unified single network.
The cellular market disparately needs more competition. The prices are getting out of hand. Their merger will only make it easier to raise prices. T-Mobile currently offers the cheapest data plans(of the major providers), when they go away prices are free to be raised across the board. The only people that will benefit from this merger are AT&T stock holders, not the consumer.
i will never understand that statement, i will never understand how competition lowers prices. its consumers that control prices, if a price goes too high, people wont buy it, they will look for the cheaper deal. if att and tmobile merge and raise prices comsumers go elsewhere, forcing them to lower their prices anyways. in other words itll be the same situation it is now, just with one less carrier. not much of a difference. The best way to solve this problem is for the government to buy all the spectrum, att’s , t-mos, sprint, verizon. metro pcs, etc. and make one unified carrier that has every phone in existence, and every kind of plan for every person, from the cheap metro pcs type plans to the high end heavy data user plan and have tiered plans so everyone is happy…..it is possible, and phone prices would be regulated…….its very possible and would eliminate this idiotic squabbling.
honestly dont see the merger going through for att&t and tmo tho…
rofl You have got to be one of the dumbest people to ever live. Like… Every single statement you made was completely ridiculous.
Says the guy who doesn’t know the difference between statement and opinion.
No, I’m pretty sure “statement” doesn’t imply truth. ihatefanboys’ comment was both a statement AND an opinion.
JustSayin you’re an idiot too. cwatididthurr?
You missed the key principle. When there is only 1 seller, consumers don’t have an option as to if they “want” to pay the asking price. Do you think Diamonds are rare stones? If you do, then you now know why this merger is not good for consumers. There was a reason for the govt to break up Ma Bell. The same reason why this merger must be shot down. If DT wants out of the U.S., then sell to an outside party.
You completely contradict your first statement. You say you don’t understand how competition lowers prices, then you go on to say that if the price is too high the consumer will go somewhere else. Where are they to go without the competition that you feel is unnecessary?
Are you mentally challenged?
ridiculous my bills gonna be outta control
metro pcs is looking great right now
Ohh, but you live in the Hampton’s….
Sprint offers a way better “unlimited’ plan than T-Mobile does – and they don’t limit your speed based on usage. Want to know why people originally loved T-Mo ? Their customer service… which sometimes made up for their crappy cell service. Sprint – on the other hand – has been amazing on both fronts for my wife from day 1. I’m currently with VZW, but 99% sure I’m switching to Sprint once my contract is up ( and as long as I can get a Nexus 3 or similar phone on the carrier ).
I pay $80 a mo unlimited on T-Mo… you on sprint pay $100 or so, that’s about $250 a year, i have 4g in my area (San Diego) sprint does not. T-Mo will throttle me after 5gigs, i don’t know sprint’s policy on overages, what is it?
I pay $70 a month on Sprint with unlimited everything except anytime mins. Anytime minutes is 450 but you get free mobile to any other mobile in the country. I usually use about 50 anytime minutes a month, most of my calls are to other mobile phones. And Sprint doesn’t throttle your data at all.
At least be honest, Sprints 450 is 70, then you add the 10 for the “premium data”, then you add more for their “surcharges”, then you add even more for tax, and what do you pay? More than $70, thats for sure.
Since you want to know so bad. My bill is $86.99 a month before taxes(which differs depending on where you live) and before my employee discount. On average I pay $83 a month after taxes and my discount. Now how about you go kill yourself. Oh, and take Richard with you.
Edit: Dont ASSUME, it makes an ASS out of U and ME. I’m far from mad. And if you pay less at VZW then congrats, hi5.
Dont get mad because I called you out on your bull. Even with a discount, you pay more than you were claiming. BTW, that is more than I pay per phone on VZW. With 5 smartphones, with EVERYTHING including tax,fees AND insurance, I average $65/month/phone.
65/month/phone at 5 lines? That’s horrific. I’m paying 110 total for 2 lines, or 55 per phone, and at 30 per phone it only gets cheaper if I had 5 lines (20 per line plus 10 premium data)
@Justing With who? Not Sprint, maybe Tmobile. But. you are not including Insurance, OR taxes. I am. Plus, it is on a FAR larger network. BTW, the only plan that TMOBILE offers that cheap of a plan on includes a whopping 200mb of data. Now that is also including no insurance, and no taxes. If you want to compare our prices at least be honest about what you get. I have unlimited minutes (tmobiles cheapest plan, 1000 minutes), I have unlimited data (tmobiles cheapest plan, 200mb) I have insurance (would put you over your claimed price for tmobile), and I am including taxes (again, would put you over your claimed price)…
furthermore you guys can’t tether for free and for a comparable plan it’s $110. not a better deal
How is combining two existing companies with customer bases and there respective spectrum going to solve the spectrum problem? It doesn’t provide more spectrum through magic. It’s stunning they can come forth with such a completely illogical argument and expect that to fly.
They think we’re stupid. They also had NO IDEA how much people would hate this merger. It’s awesome to see them floundering on this. A very tiny amount of my faith in the FCC would be restored if they just denied this merger.
I see a lot of people for it. Myself included.
You realize that for T-Mobile customers, this is like the worst deal ever. T-Mobile customers will lose their 3G/4G entirely. Meaning that if they renewed their contract within the last year (as I did), they’ll be totally stuck on Edge or slower data. AT&T has announced that they’re remove T-Mobile’s high-speed equipment from the towers and replace it with their own. AT&T and T-Mobile have always used different, incompatible frequencies for their High-Speed Internet. http://ydfgg.com/2011/03/21/t-mobile-3g-handsets-to-be-rendered-obsolete-by-att-merger/
Also, T-Mobile’s unlimited Data Plans will go away, being replaced with AT&T’s tiered Data Plans, which tend to cost more. http://ydfgg.com/2010/06/02/att-announces-new-data-plans-unlimited-disappears/
T-Mobile’s Free Calling over WiFi will likely end as well, as well as UMA entirely. http://www.examiner.com/technology-in-national/t-mobile-making-all-uma-wi-fi-calling-free-on-supported-android-handsets
Finally, T-Mobile has never cared to offer a Wireless Hotspot capability, and hasn’t cared if the customers went ahead and got it for themselves by rooting their phones. AT&T is VERY anti-rooting, and charges a premium for the service. http://ydfgg.com/2011/04/27/final-warning-att-police-are-cracking-down-on-unauthorized-tethering/
Not to be obtuse, but if I am to consider what Tmobile customers will lose, I must also consider what AT&T customers stand to gain. Considering they outnumber T-Mobile customers 2 to 1, I guess your whole arguement doesnt really mean much. Especially considering, IF even one thing you are complaining about happens, you will be able to get out of the contract WITHOUT an ETF, and go to Sprint. But, ALL I really care about, is what the COMPANY wants to do. IE, DT wants to sell. It is THEIR company….
OK, you really did go there. What you’re referring to is also known as the “Tyranny of the Majority”, and was termed that by America’s founding fathers. That’s why we don’t live in a straight democracy…(ie-the Senate) I mean, what if all Brown Eyed people believe that all Blue Eyed people should die? Brown Eyes outnumber Blue Eyes, and never mind that it’s genocide. The fact is, AT&T only got as big as they did by way of mergers, such as the huge one with Cingular, and several smaller ones to boot. T-Mobile hasn’t done that, but has instead grown by strength of innovation only (such as the first carrier to offer an Android phone). However, losing UMA and 3G wouldn’t violate contract, as those services were always optional, so T-Mobile customers will get screwed. And the FCC has to consider that fact, even if T-Mo wants to sell.
If all the Blue eyed people thought that, then who are the hazel eyes to sqay anything? Your arguement holds no weight there. It isn’t like its a hostile takeover.
As for 3G and UMA being optional, sounds like that is the terms YOU signed up for then. Should have thought about it a little longer first, heh? I mean, if it is “optional”, what would you have done if T-Mobile decided to end it?
This is why, when I renewed my plan, I didn’t switch to the bundle of unlimited phone/data/text.. “If” the merger goes through and I lose 3G/4G then I drop the data and go back to phone and text only I suppose, and my bill should drop from the data I pay.. I could live with it.. the apps and games I would already have installed would be it I suppose..but all in all, I don’t think it would kill me.
Okay, wait until it’s just Verizon and ATT and see how that goes. Verizon introducing tiered plans just like AT&T reeks of collusion. Bend over.
For me, there is only AT&T, and Verizon, Sprint, nor Tmobile have service here. Nationally, there are no less than 15 alternatives….
As a Tmobile customer, I have no doubt that AT&T will benefit by buying us out. But AT&T has had some of the worst pricing plans in the face of all their competition. Now their one GSM comptetitor will be gone…I can’t see how this helps consumers. They will essentially own all GSM infrastructure in our country. It is like Whole Foods (Whole paycheck) is rolling into town and taking over my local chain store and leaving me with their jacked up prices. Once the merger occurs, and tmoble customers return to stores to upgrade equipment, the most heard quote will be, “I’m sorry, I just don’t see that plan like your old one in our system; you’ll have to pick one of ours.”
dude… GSM died with EDGE. Who gives a flying flock (self-edited) about a 2G service when this merger is about 3G capabilities, and one of them wasting the global 4G radio standard, AWS, on 3G? So you’d rather have 2 competing 2G providers, than actual competition in 4G, including truly global phones? That’s about the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard…
GSM died with EDGE? Seriously? Have you seen what the world outside the USA have? GSM.
GSM was a 2G technology. It was based on TDMA. The international carriers tracking the 3GPP standards (like GSM for 2G) moved on to UMTS/HSPA for 3G (W-CDMA) and now LTE (I believe also W-CDMA) for 4G. People just hold onto the GSM moniker to refer to “the SIM card based technology the rest of the world uses” even though that was just the 2G technology.
What you overlook is that GSM phones still use that 2G for voice.. Which is why you can surf and talk at the same time.. Both AT&T and T-Mobile phones will work as phones outside the US because of the GSM frequencies.. Data becomes a problem because of 3G frequency differences, but I have used the Edge backup in Europe. (expensive and slow compared to 3G/4G).. It’s a personal preference I guess. but I kind of find it a good idea to separate the phone and data frequencies.
Whether or not AT&T-mobile will be better, the saddest part is all jobs that will be lost during this recession due to T-Mo being gone. I’m staring at T-Mo HQ (which has added several big building in the past several years) which will most likely be empty.
Please let me cash this 39 billion dollar check . Please .
Well AT&T already has commercials stating the over of T.
“It’s up to the FCC to decide whether or not AT&T and T-Mobile truly need each other.” Actually the FCC isn’t the primary decision maker in cases like this. The DOJ gets involved if there are anti-trust issues, and the FTC stick their hand in if commerce is affected. Only then does the FCC get their vote.
It’s more profitable to buy out the competition then to compete with them.
This deal isn’t about providing customers with more of anything. It’s about providing them with less.
It’s like a crack dealer taking out all the other dealers in the area. Now you only got one person to buy your goods from. The problem for you is your hooked so you’ll pay whatever he/she charges.
Cellphone companies have been smart to price them so competitively that everyone and their dogs had one. Now that we’re all accustomed to living our lived viced to our phones. The smart choice is to slowly milk us for what we can. Once we consider jumping ship they just sink the other ship.
Look at how the prices dropped dropped dropped and now the 3 big wigs are cutting this, raising that…..slowly piece by piece…Now they can’t raise it anymore because there’s always one other guy who doesn’t want to play by that rule so now they have to band together to overpower the little guy cause once he’s out it’s gonna sky rocket.
The FCC should look into what happened in Hawaii when Mesa Airlines went to buy out aloha air, Aloha opened the books to them to show them their profits, their game plans and everything they did to make them a competitive airlines. Mesa backed out of the purchase, created Go! and undercut them so hard they went bankrupt trying to compete. Once Aloha was gone airfares skyrocketed. It went from average 69$ for a interisland trip. Once Go! showed up it dropped to 29$ because Go! was charging 29, sometimes even 19$. Once aloha couldn’t compete they left the market. Then it went from 29, to 80 to 108 and now some flights are 120$.
Mergers are no good for anyone except the companies merging.
I just went to my local mall today and I DON’T SEE a single T-MOBILE BOOTH any where saw two AT&T stores one on top other bottom but they say the county or store won’t let AT&T open a second store but theirs a Sprint store near the Verizon booth
The good news for T-mo and their customers:
If this deal falls through, T-mobile gets billions of dollars worth of Spectrum as well as a ~9 billion dollar cash infusion. That’s best-case scenario, to me. T-mobile increases their spectrum and has enough money to upgrade with it, and AT&T is dealt a blow of (hopefully) humility.
NO IT SHOULD NOT. CAUSE IT WOULD RUIN THE T-Mobile. Cause I just went to my local store. I DON’T SEE A SINGLE T-MOBILE booth around. and it looks like AT&T wants to shut out T-Mobile. don’t know why they should merge it will fucked up the data plan for T-Mobile consumers