With Sprint / Nextel Gone, How will this effect rebanding?

[txshooter]

As this article reads Sprint / Nextel has now merged with Clearwire. I wonder how this will effect the rebanding issues? Is it possible for this to become a non-issue in the future? Now that this merger has taken place, I also wonder what will become of Nextel. Many of us have grown to depend on these as a secondary form of semi-secure communication between public safety officials.

Clearwire, Sprint Nextel to form wireless company


By MICHELLE CHAPMAN
Associated Press

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Clearwire and Sprint Nextel said today they will combine their wireless broadband units to create a $14.55 billion communications company.

The new company, to be named Clearwire, will receive a $3.2 billion investment from Intel Corp., Google Inc., Comcast Corp., Time Warner Cable Inc. and Bright House Networks. The investment is based on a target price of $20 per Clearwire share and will give the companies a 22 percent stake in the new venture.

Overland Park, Kan.-based Sprint Nextel Corp. will be majority owner with a 51 percent equity stake, while existing Clearwire shareholders will receive about 27 percent interest.

"The agreement enables us to get to market faster and reach a broader audience than we could have if we went alone," Dan Hesse, Sprint Nextel's chief executive officer, told analysts during a conference call today.

Clearwire, which will concentrate on rolling out a mobile network based on the emerging WiMAX standard, will also receive an investment from Trilogy Equity Partners, led by U.S. wireless industry veteran John Stanton.

WiMAX promises faster download speeds than the latest networks run by cell-phone operators, and it's even seen as a potential competitor to fixed-line broadband.

Rivals such as AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless have eschewed WiMax, opting instead for upgrades to their current wireless broadband networks and a future technology called Long Term Evolution.

Clearwire already provides wireless Internet service in some parts of the country, using a WiMax-like technology. The company had a subscriber base of nearly 400,000 wireless broadband customers at the end of 2007.

The new company is looking for a U.S. network deployment reaching 120 million to 140 million people by the end of 2010.

Sprint and Clearwire, a startup founded by cellular pioneer Craig McCaw, had already announced their plans to build out networks using WiMAX technology, but had been looking for outside funding. A proposed partnership on developing WiMax fell through last summer.

The new company will be led by Clearwire Chief Executive Benjamin Wolff, with Sprint Chief Technology Officer Barry West serving as president. West also leads Sprint's XOHM division.

The Kirkland, Wash.-based venture will house workers from Clearwire and Sprint's XOHM unit and will have research and development and other operations located in Herndon, Va. Its board will consist of 13 members at the start. Sprint will name seven of them, which will include at least one independent director. The investor group will name four members, including one independent. Eagle River, a private investment company controlled by wireless veteran Craig McCaw, will name one member, with the remaining independent member selected by Clearwire's nominating committee.

McCaw is expected to serve as non-executive chairman. Other anticipated board members include Sprint's Hesse, Comcast Chairman and CEO Brian Roberts, Time Warner Cable President and CEO Glen Britt and Stanton.

The deal, which has been approved by the boards of all companies involved, must be approved by Clearwire shareholders and regulatory agencies, but is expected to close during the fourth quarter. The company will apply for a Nasdaq listing under the ticker "CLWR."

In morning trading today, Clearwire shares were up 59 cents, or 3.6 percent, to $17.05 while Sprint shares were up 34 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $9.53.

[HLA]

i would think they could call the new company whatever they want but if you look at the big picture, all of the towers are already up nationwide on those frequencies already, they would go under having to change all of them. they'll keep the same frequencies in place.

[nmfire10]

They can merge with big bird and the cookie monster. It doesn't change what frequencies that Nextel systems occupy.

[escomm]

From what I read of the deal it won't affect rebanding at all. In fact it seems like it's going to be a data-only company, a wireless ISP if you will.

What is more concerning to the rebanding process is the FCC and District Court's repeated rulings that Nextel must vacate its 800MHz spectrum at the end of June, despite the fact that many PS agencies have not completed (or even begun) their migration.

[RKG]

I believe that the actual merger partner will be a spin-off from Nextel/Sprint, consisting of the WiMax/data business, leaving the Nextel SMRS function unaffected.

[motorola_otaku]

What is more concerning to the rebanding process is the FCC and District Court's repeated rulings that Nextel must vacate its 800MHz spectrum at the end of June, despite the fact that many PS agencies have not completed (or even begun) their migration.

Wait, is Nextel iDen completely vacating 800 MHz altogether now, or are they still just going to move up a few MHz? The news articles I've read seem to indicate the former, but all the official publications I can find are sticking to the latter. If they're staying on 800, then an OTAPed updated bandplan should keep everyone's handsets on the air. But if they are being told to pack up and completely leave 800.. then doesn't that render the whole rebanding process moot?

[k2hz]

According to this Business Week article, Sprint is rumored to be considering selling or spinning off Nextel.

http://www.businessweek.com/technology/ ... 830171.htm?

[alex]

They already wrote down the cost of acquiring Nextel, and took a huge loss on their stock price last month if I recall... They [sprint] have really run nextel into the ground.

[TheZach]

They already wrote down the cost of acquiring Nextel, and took a huge loss on their stock price last month if I recall... They [sprint] have really run nextel into the ground.

Sprint - together with nextel. : Done.

Didnt they have a commercial like that?

[Josh]

Think about how fast rebanding could occur if NexTel wasn't there at all... just reassign, reprogram, and retune various public safety radio equipment and be Done.| then leave NexTel to figure it out afterward.

Rebanding is taking too long, I don't know who's to blame other than the bureacracies. I live near Canada and am therefore in the "last wave".... what's nice at least is that the newer TRSs are programmed to lower 800Mhz frequencies, not NPSPAC. The 200+ site MPSCS should be a lot of fun to reprogram... since it's statewide, without NexTel being there (should they be forced to shutdown in June), reprogramming should be a snap.