Consumer Survey: Sprint = Biggest Loser

Sprint is scraping the bottom of the barrel among US carriers in terms of overall satisfaction. The results come from Consumer Reports, which polled more than 58,000 subscribers about their opinions. Sprint received poor marks all around, with consumers dinging its value, voice and text quality, and 4G reliability. Sprint ranked second last year.

Sprint has certainly struggled throughout much of 2013. It fought a contentious battle to acquire Clearwire earlier this year. It wrestled with its own shareholders as well as the shareholders of Clearwire over the value of the company. It also had to stave off an aggressive offer from Dish Networks -- all while being acquired by Japan's SoftBank. Sprint also shut down its iDEN network in June and has been re-farming its spectrum to improve its LTE network. The company had a full plate. That didn't stop consumers from rating it poorly.

Verizon Wireless earned consumers' highest ratings as far as the top four are concerned. Its customers were generally pleased with Verizon's LTE 4G network and some aspects of its customer support organization. Consumer Reports said that AT&T ranked second and T-Mobile ranked third, with "ho-hum" marks. AT&T managed to beat Verizon Wireless in at least one category, though: reliability of its 4G service.

[ Sprint is building its LTE coverage, but it still badly lags AT&T and Verizon. See Sprint LTE Network Slowly Expands. ]

Verizon Wireless recently admitted that it is struggling to handle all the traffic on its LTE network in major markets across the country, such as Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City. Its network has reached capacity in many markets, and it is forcing some data connections back down to its CDMA 3G network. Verizon is preparing to offer LTE on the 1700 MHz spectrum in some markets to supplement its 700 MHz spectrum, but is a long way from making the additional spectrum widely available.

AT&T's LTE network has fared better in large cities, and that is likely why consumers rated it above Verizon's.

Consumer Reports said Consumer Cellular, a prepaid provider, was the overall leader among wireless networks in the US.

"Our latest cell service satisfaction survey revealed a somewhat precipitous decline by Sprint that shuffled the rankings of the major standard service providers," said Glenn Derene, electronics content development team leader for Consumer Reports, in the press release. "And smaller, no-frills, no-contract, and prepaid service providers continue to do a better job of satisfying customers, and provide an increasingly viable alternative to some of the expensive, long-term contracts that many consumers find themselves locked into."

Many of the prepaid networks run on those of their larger rivals. For example, Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile USA both use Sprint's network, while Consumer Cellular runs on AT&T's network. Cricket, MetroPCS, and U.S. Cellular run their own networks, but offer no-contract service plans that often dramatically undercut those of the country's biggest wireless providers.

source: http://www.informationweek.com/mobile/mobile-business/consumer-survey-sprint---biggest-loser/d/d-id/1112728

China Mobile To Release 4G Service With Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhones; Sprint Customers Declining

Mizuho Securities Analyst Marvin Lo in Hong Kong said that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s deal with China Mobile Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE:CHL) would give it a big increase in the China market as the largest local carrier has the largest number of users. He added that at least 10% or 70 million wealthier ones would be potential customers for iPhones among China Mobile’s more than 700 million mobile subscribers.

By using the nation’s home grown flavor of LTE called TD-LTE, China Mobile will unveil its 4G network. With existing 4G LTE, the carrier technology is unsuited, an attempt by China to avoid paying patent royalities to Qualcomm, much as it former did with its version of 3G service “TD-SCDMA”.

For TD-LTE, Apple (AAPL)’s iPhone 5s and 5c specifically include support and in early September, China’s Telecom Equipment Certification Center approved the two models. Addition of the two new iPhones is a small minority of devices competent of working on China Mobile’s 4G network and licensed by the state.

According to Consumer Reports’ survey released on Thursday, Sprint Corporation (NYSE:S) attained “dreary marks” in voice, text messaging, 4G reliability and value. However, last year, Sprint ranked No. 2 behind Verizon Wireless. The company is in the middle of upgrading its network to offer improved and faster service to customers, but the transformation has been bumpy for users. That’s why in the last few years, many have left the carrier.

A Sprint representative commented on the Consumer Reports’ survey by saying that they’re not necessarily surprising but disappointing. The company is hopeful that declining rate of customers will get better with improvement in the network. Last month, the company demonstrated Sprint Spark, its enhanced LTE network, to stimulate interest for its next-generation network.

Once again, Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) is on top of the list, although Verizon recently admitted that it was facing pressures in big cities like San Francisco and New York. Consumer Reports said that T-Mobile US Inc (NYSE:TMUS) and AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) attained “ho-hum” results but for 4G reliability, AT&T was the lone carrier to get a top rating. About offering both the fastest and most reliable network in the nation, AT&T has been advertising a lot while to pair with HSPA+ network, T-Mobile has built out its 4G LTE network.

According to survey, many customers are overpaying for their data, with 38 percent of users surveyed using half or less than half of their monthly data plans.

source: http://www.consensuspress.com/china-mobile-to-release-4g-service-with-apple-inc-nasdaqaapls-iphones-sprint-customers-declining/252602/

Sprint dead last in Consumer Reports' phone service survey

The nation's third-largest wireless carrier by subscriber base sank to the bottom of a survey conducted by Consumer Reports over cell phone service. Sprint scored "dismal marks" in value, voice, text messaging, and 4G reliability, according to Consumer Reports' survey released Thursday. Sprint ranked No. 2 behind Verizon Wireless a year ago.

t's the latest headache for a carrier that is going through a long and painful transformation of its network. Sprint is in the middle of upgrading its network to allow for better and faster service, but the transition has been rough on customers. As a result, many have left the carrier in the last few years.

"While the findings in the Consumer Reports' survey are disappointing, they're not necessarily surprising," said a Sprint representative. "We've asked customers during the past year to 'pardon our dust' as we build out and upgrade our network."

Sprint is hoping the rate of customer attrition will fade once the network improves. To drum up interest for its next-generation network, the company last month demonstrated Sprint Spark, its enhanced LTE network. The company said in areas where the coverage has improved, the customer satisfaction has moved up accordingly.

Verizon Wireless was once again the top-rated carrier, though Verizon recently conceded that it was facing pressures in big cities such as New York and San Francisco.

AT&T and T-Mobile scored "ho-hum" results, Consumer Reports said, but AT&T was the lone carrier to get a top rating for 4G reliability.

source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-57613261-94/sprint-dead-last-in-consumer-reports-phone-service-survey/

Investors Press AT&T and Verizon for Reports on Government Surveillance

Citing intense global concern over the impact of disclosures regarding surveillance programs directed by the U.S. government agencies, investors in AT&T and Verizon Communications have filed shareholder proposals calling on the companies to publish semi-annual reports detailing how often they have shared information with U.S. or foreign governments and what type of customer information has been shared.

The prime sponsor of the AT&T proposal is the $160.7 billion New York State Common Retirement Fund, which manages assets on behalf of more than one million State employees and retirees. Trillium Asset Management, a Boston-based investment management firm, is the lead proponent of the Verizon proposal. The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California and other organizations and investment firms including co-filed at one or both of the companies.

"As shareholders, customers, and citizens we deserve to know if phone companies like AT&T and Verizon are handing our personal information over to the government," said ACLU of Northern California Executive Director Abdi Soltani. "Secret, unchecked surveillance is antithetical to democracy, and the government is going too far."

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, trustee of the New York State Common Retirement Fund, said, "AT&T's failure to disclose what customer information it shares with U.S. and foreign governments presents significant risk to shareholder value. Transparency allows investors to make informed decisions about corporate behavior. Publishing regular reports on requests for information from governments would be an appropriate response to shareholder and customer concerns about trust and privacy in the digital world."

The shareholder proposals note that reports on government data requests are now published regularly by Internet companies such as Google, Microsoft, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Yahoo!, and Apple. However, AT&T and Verizon have not publicly disclosed the extent and nature of information provided to the government. And while Google and Microsoft have sued seeking authorization to disclose further information to the public, neither AT&T nor Verizon has done so.

Jonas Kron, Trillium's senior vice president and director of shareholder advocacy, said, "Verizon and AT&T are not managing this crisis effectively. Now is the time for them to proactively demonstrate that they will protect user privacy, because it is in the interest of everyone - investors, citizens, our nation and the companies. The business case is compelling - opportunities for growth may be lost - but equally important are the civil liberties that must be protected."

The proposals at AT&T and Verizon, which are scheduled to be voted on at the companies' annual meetings in spring 2014, note that controversy over U.S. government surveillance programs has spurred massive global press coverage, hearings in the U.S. Congress and European legislature, and widespread calls for reform. Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has called the NSA surveillance program "a breach of international law." U.S. Senator Ron Wyden has said, "I have to believe the civil liberties of millions of American have been violated."

While AT&T and Verizon must comply with their legal obligations, the proposals state, "failure to persuade customers of a genuine and long-term commitment to privacy" could present the companies with serious financial, legal and reputational risks.

"Consumer trust is critical for business in the digital age," said Michael Connor, executive director of Open MIC, a non-profit organization that works with shareholders on media issues. "These proposals highlight the need for companies to take the lead and defend the privacy rights of their customers."

Filers of the AT&T proposal are The New York State Common Retirement Fund, Trillium Asset Management LLC, the ACLU of Northern California, and Arjuna Capital.

Filers of the Verizon proposal are Trillium Asset Management LLC, the ACLU of Northern California, Park Foundation, and CleanYield Asset Management.

source: http://www.cellular-news.com/story/63089.php