{"id":42134,"date":"2019-08-08T12:11:45","date_gmt":"2019-08-08T19:11:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/get-involved\/gsma-membership\/gsma_resources\/t-mobiles-spectrum-and-coverage-in-a-post-sprint-world\/"},"modified":"2019-08-08T12:11:45","modified_gmt":"2019-08-08T19:11:45","slug":"t-mobiles-spectrum-and-coverage-in-a-post-sprint-world","status":"publish","type":"gsma_theme_resources","link":"https:\/\/www.gsma.com\/get-involved\/gsma-membership\/gsma_resources\/t-mobiles-spectrum-and-coverage-in-a-post-sprint-world\/","title":{"rendered":"T-MOBILE\u2019S SPECTRUM AND COVERAGE IN A POST-SPRINT WORLD"},"content":{"rendered":"

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) officially cleared the merger between T-Mobile and Sprint, joining the FCC in support of the deal, and bringing the merger one step closer to closing.\u00a0The DOJ\u2019s settlement<\/a>\u00a0comes with stipulations, however, including divesting Sprint\u2019s prepaid business and some spectrum holdings to DISH so that a viable fourth nationwide competitor can enter the market. Additionally, the settlement declares that both operators must deploy high-quality 5G networks for the benefit of American consumers. We\u2019re taking a fresh look at what coverage and spectrum would look like in response to the DOJ\u2019s proposed deal.<\/p>\n

Capitalizing on spectrum synergies<\/h2>\n

According to the consent decree with the DOJ, T-Mobile will keep Sprint\u2019s entire 2.5 GHz and PCS spectrum portfolio, which will be integrated when the deal is finalized. The new T-Mobile will build an LTE layer on a denser cell site grid using Sprint and T-Mobile PCS spectrum synergies in combination with T-Mobile\u2019s 600 MHz, 700 MHz and AWS holdings. This will address the existing capacity demand and expedite the process of allocating most of the 2.5 GHz spectrum assets to 5G NR.<\/p>\n

\"Ookla_Sprint-TMob_Spectrum_20190802\"<\/p>\n

To boost capacity, 2.5 GHz 5G-capable radios will be overlaid on existing T-Mobile sites, and over time, the existing PCS radio equipment will be reconfigured to support additional PCS spectrum coming from Sprint. In many major markets, that spectrum is contiguous to existing T-Mobile assets and will allow for wider allocations and higher spectral efficiency.<\/p>\n

\"Top-Largest-Markets_TMobile-Sprint-03\"<\/p>\n

Looking closely at the PCS spectrum in top markets, the contiguity between Sprint and T-Mobile is staggering. In markets like Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and Detroit, adding the Sprint G Block will allow the new T-Mobile to expand the existing PCS spectrum assets and deploy 20 MHz channels. In Miami and Atlanta, the contiguous PCS block is a whopping 30 MHz wide. In markets like Detroit and Dallas, T-Mobile will have two 20 MHz PCS channels. This will enable the new T-Mobile to offer significantly improved capacity while leveraging more spectrally efficient 20 MHz channels. All this additional capacity makes the PCS spectrum a strong candidate for the 5G network.<\/p>\n

T-Mobile\u2019s good-faith agreement with DISH will potentially allow T-Mobile to leverage additional unused 600 MHz spectrum licenses, and a similar reconfiguration could be applied to the existing 600 MHz radios \u2014 widening the existing 5 MHz and 10 MHz channels \u2014 should the leasing agreement with DISH come to fruition.<\/p>\n

\"Ookla_TMob-Dish_600_Spectrum_20190731\"<\/p>\n

Since DISH currently doesn\u2019t have an existing network \u2014 and it will take them several years to build it \u2014 their 600 MHz spectrum licenses are sitting idle, and American consumers aren\u2019t benefiting from that spectrum. T-Mobile and DISH have agreed to an arrangement through which T-Mobile will be able to lease that spectrum and put it to use on its network. The arrangement is mutually beneficial, providing DISH with a revenue stream that could help with their network buildout, and the new T-Mobile with additional spectrum to enhance and accelerate the network transition process.<\/p>\n

\"Top-Largest-Markets_TMobile-Dish-01\"<\/p>\n

In some of the top markets like New York City, Los Angeles and Miami, DISH\u2019s 600 MHz spectrum licenses are directly adjacent to T-Mobile\u2019s licenses, creating larger, contiguous spectrum blocks and allowing for wider LTE or 5G channels. In markets like New York, T-Mobile currently runs LTE in the 600 MHz band using only a 5 MHz wide channel, while the other 5 MHz license is idle and likely to be used for 5G, once 5G-capable user devices in the 600 MHz band become commercially available. Adding DISH\u2019s 20 MHz contiguous spectrum block will allow the new T-Mobile to leverage the widest defined LTE channels (20 MHz) and still have 10 MHz available for 5G deployment. This would offer the highest possible spectral efficiency on a frequency band with superior propagation characteristics to the mid- and high-band. In addition, new smartphone designs allowing four separate data streams on the low band have already hit the market, allowing carrier aggregation of two low-band frequencies, or 4×4 MIMO. But more on that later.<\/p>\n

What the merger means for coverage<\/h2>\n

\"Ookla_Sprint-TMob_Coverage_20190731\"<\/p>\n

An estimated\u00a011,000 Sprint sites<\/a>\u00a0will be retained to improve capacity and\/or coverage on the new network. These sites add additional capacity to metro areas and expand coverage to areas T-Mobile hasn\u2019t previously served. The sites will receive support for T-Mobile\u2019s frequency bands, which could include replacement of Sprint\u2019s existing 2.5 GHz equipment. Because Sprint\u2019s existing 2.5 GHz infrastructure has equipment from a variety of vendors, these may be replaced to ensure compatibility with T-Mobile\u2019s single-vendor-per-market strategy.<\/p>\n

Integrating tens of thousands of existing Sprint sites will also mean reducing the lengthy regulatory process and will be done on a market-to-market basis.<\/p>\n

Merging the networks and migrating customers<\/h2>\n

The details of how T-Mobile and Sprint will merge their networks are much clearer now than when\u00a0we last wrote about this potential merger<\/a>. In order to expedite the migration of Sprint subscribers onto T-Mobile\u2019s network, T-Mobile will bridge the two network cores together by routing the traffic to the T-Mobile anchor network. This will be accomplished through the use of Multi-Operator Core Network (MOCN).<\/p>\n

T-Mobile used a similar approach several years ago when migrating MetroPCS CDMA subscribers to the T-Mobile network. The number of Sprint customers migrating to T-Mobile in major metropolitan areas like New York and Los Angeles would be very similar to the number of MetroPCS customers that migrated, according to T-Mobile.<\/p>\n

Many customers will not require new devices. A large number of Sprint\u2019s postpaid subscribers carry devices that support T-Mobile LTE frequency bands, including the common PCS band, and will only require an over-the-air software update to enable new features and services like Voice over LTE (VoLTE). This approach will offer immediate improvements in coverage and speed to Sprint subscribers, while freeing up Sprint\u2019s PCS spectrum assets currently used for CDMA voice services.<\/p>\n

What to expect from the new T-Mobile 5G network<\/h2>\n

5G is central to T-Mobile\u2019s commitments to the FCC, including:<\/p>\n