The Delaware Supreme Court will decide whether Cox Communications can become a mobile virtual network operator with Verizon (as it wants) or if it is contractually bound through a 2017 agreement with Sprint to partner with T-Mobile, according to Law 360. Cox is attempting to overturn a Delaware Chancery Court ruling that found Cox had agreed to work exclusively for 36 months with a Sprint affiliate.
Cox argued that contract language was being misinterpreted to allow T-Mobile “to enforce rights that belong to Sprint,” and that the injunction against Cox was based on the “erroneous conclusion Cox knew it was supposed to stick with T-Mobile,” according to Law 360.
Whether it joins the party with T-Mobile or Verizon, Cox will have good company. Other big cablecos, Comcast and Charter Communications, offer MVNO mobile services. Comcast’s Xfinity Mobile and Charter’s Spectrum Mobile both use the Verizon Wireless network. At the end of 3Q21, Comcast reported 3.7 million Xfinity customers and Charter had 3.2 million Spectrum customers. Over the past two years, Xfinity and Spectrum have grown at nearly 10 percent and 20 percent, per quarter, respectively.
Most of this cableco MVNO growth has come from bundling their branded mobile services with their wired broadband services (internet, TV, voice). Comcast and Charter are getting their broadband customers who are also AT&T, Verizon, or T-Mobile customers to switch to the cableco’s mobile service.
By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor
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