By 2017, Sprint’s network will perform better than Verizon, AT&T or T-Mobile. That’s the bold statement Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure made to CNNMoney reporters David Goldman and Hope King. This reiterates the statements that Claure made over the summer, stating Sprint would be among the top two in overall network performance in the U.S. While Sprint has shared plans to build out its macro sites and densify its networks in metropolitan areas, two years is not a lot of time to achieve this goal. Goldman and King explained, “Sprint has the tools to do it — it’s always just been a question of using them the right way. After its 2013 purchase of mobile network Clearwire, Sprint is sitting on a boatload of unused wireless spectrum . In fact, Sprint has more spectrum than any of its competitors.” Claure agreed noting that the company has a big advantage over Verizon. “We have half their customers and twice the amount of spectrum,” Claure told CNNMoney. Sprint’s spectrum is in the higher frequency range, though lower bandwidth is preferred. Claure told the news outlet that to take advantage of the spectrum they own, they need to deploy three times the number of towers as Verizon utilizes.
Claure explained that while it will be expensive, it will be worth it in the end. “That’s because Sprint’s spectrum has a trick up its sleeve: higher-range airwaves allow you to offer much higher speeds. Once Sprint completes its network overhaul, it’s not hard to imagine that it will be the fastest in the country,” Goldman and King reported. Claure also explained that they want 80% of markets to rank number one or two in overall performance. “When that day that comes, it will be harder for Verizon and AT&T to compete, and we will be the big winner,” Claure said (CNNMoney).
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