Sprint To Rein In Boost

posted Aug 16, 2006, 4:33 PM

Sprint COO Len Lauer said that the carrier will make changes to halt the growth of its youth-focused MVNO Boost. Boost is outpacing Sprint growth, and is getting large enough that it will soon put a strain on Sprint's iDEN network. The iDEN network is already under pressure because Sprint was asked to give up a portion of its iDEN spectrum to the FCC in order to create clear public safety bands. The growing population of Boost users are straining the shrunken network even further, and Sprint would prefer that the limited capacity was used to serve Nextel customers, who typically pay more per month to use iDEN handsets. Sprint has not detailed how they will curtail Boost's growth, however Sprint previously announced another initiative that should thin out Nextel's crowded 800 MHz spectrum. The carrier intends to launch dual mode handsets that use CDMA for voice and data calls, and only relies on iDEN for Push To Talk. Sprint's first dual mode handset, the ic502, has already been cleared by the FCC.

more info at Kansas City Star »

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