TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Sprint Begins High Speed Mobile Services

Sprint Begins High Speed Mobile Services

Lisa Minter (lisa_minter2001@yahoo.com)
Thu, 7 Jul 2005 12:23:25 -0500

Sprint Corp. said on Thursday it has begun selling high-speed wireless
services to laptop computer users and would have services in business
districts and airports in 34 U.S. markets in July, making it the
second U.S. mobile operator to offer such services.

Sprint -- the third biggest U.S. mobile provider which plans to buy
Nextel Communications Inc. in the current quarter -- said charges for
the service would range from $40 a month to $90.

Its $80 monthly fee for unlimited use is the same as that of bigger
rival Verizon Wireless, a venture of Verizon Communications Inc. and
Vodafone Group Plc.

Sprint said it plans to provide the service in 14 broad market areas
covering a population of about 92 million in the third quarter and
expects to serve markets with 143 million people by the fourth
quarter, expanding to coverage of 150 million potential customers in
early 2006.

Sprint is following in the footsteps of Verizon Wireless, the
country's second biggest wireless provider which started its service
in 2003. Verizon has services in about 50 markets using the same
high-speed technology, known as EV-DO.

Both companies, along with most large operators around the world, are
working on making their networks faster in the hope of boosting their
revenue by encouraging people to use phones for everything from
watching video clips to reading e-mail.

Verizon plans coverage for 150 million potential customers or half the
population by the end of 2005. Cingular Wireless, a venture of SBC
Communications and BellSouth Corp. plans to have high-speed services
in about 15 to 20 markets by year end.

Sprint plans to sell new handsets and applications based on the higher
speed network by the end of the fourth quarter.

It already has agreements to sell laptop cards from Novatel Wireless
Inc. and Sierra Wireless Inc.

Sprint said it expects its latest service to provide Web access
average speeds of 400 to 700 kilobits per second, about six times
faster than its current network.

Copyright 2005 Reuters Limited.

NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily.

Post Followup Article Use your browser's quoting feature to quote article into reply
Go to Next message: Lisa Minter: "Netters Change Habits to Avoid Spyware and Spam"
Go to Previous message: Linc Madison: "Re: Last Laugh! Western Union's Comment About Useless Phones"
TELECOM Digest: Home Page