Skip to main content

Sprint posts loss, but unveils $9 bln LightSquared deal

Sprint Dan Hesse
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Telecommunications operator Sprint has posted a net loss of some $847 million for the second quarter of 2011—a figure which has sent some investors running for the hills as the company struggles to compete against Verizon Wireless and AT&T—and protest the planned merger of AT&T and T-Mobile. What’s more, the company actually lost over 100,000 mobile subscribers tied into the company on contracts. However, Sprint’s second-quarter numbers weren’t all bad news: Sprint added some 1.1 million wireless subscribers during the quarter (including 674,000 prepaid subscribers) and announced a mammoth network services and spectrum hosting agreement with LightSquared that will net Sprint some $9 billion over an 11-year period—and put Sprint in the LTE 4G mobile business.

Although the company posted a quarterly loss, Sprint CEO Dan Hesse put a positive spin on the numbers, noting that they represent the best year-on-year quarterly postpaid increase in average subscriber revenue in more than seven years—meaning, Sprint is making more money on its wireless subscribers—and it was the 14th consecutive quarter that the company has posed improvements in customer care satisfactions…which may only indicate how far it had to go 14 months ago. Sprint also posted its best-ever postpaid churn rates of 1.75 percent; moreover 9 percent of postpaid customers upgraded their handsets during the second quarter.

However, more telling for Sprint’s long-term health is the build-out deal with LightSquared. Long rumored, the 15-year deal will have LightSquared paying Sprint build out and operate a nationwide LTE network that handles L-band spectrum on behalf of LightSquared. LightSquared plans to operate as a wholesale LTE 4G operator, selling its capacity to other players—and under the deal, Sprint will be eligible to purchase up to 50 percent of LightSquared’s LE capability. The news can’t be making folks at WiMax-based Clearwire very happy—Sprint’s current 4G service is based on WiMax—but it does give Sprint access to the 4G mobile broadband technology that’s deployed in most of the rest of the world—in theory, that could mean lower costs for handsets and other mobile broadband devices and help Sprint’s offerings be competitive with other operators.

LightSquared will also be tapping into Sprint’s 3G network for combined 3G/4G data services.

The deal will bring Sprint about $9 billion in cash over the next 11 years, and LightSquared estimates the agreement will lower its operating expenses by more than $13 billion over the next eight years compared to building out its own terrestrial network. LightSquared is under an FCC mandate to deploy mobile broadband services that can cover some 260 million Americans by 2015; the company believes the deal with Sprint will help bring it to that goal more than a year ahead of schedule.

LightSquared as recently had to reconfigure its spectrum utilization to avoid interfering with low-power GPS signals.

Geoff Duncan
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…
This HP Pavilion desktop PC had its price cut from $700 to $440
HP PC connected to a monitor.

HP is one of the most reliable sources for dependable desktop PCs at affordable prices. Take this as an example -- the HP Pavilion Desktop TP01, originally priced at $700, is currently available for just $440 following a $260 discount. With a configuration that's more than enough for the usual tasks that you'll do for work or school, this is one of the most attractive desktop computer deals that we've seen in a while. We're not sure how long this offer will remain online though, so you'll have to complete the purchase as soon as possible if you don't want to miss out.

Why you should buy the HP Pavilion Desktop TP01
Let's get it out of the way -- the HP Pavilion Desktop TP01 isn't going to be as powerful as the top-of-the-line models of the best desktop computers. However, with its AMD Ryzen 3 5300G processor, integrated AMD Radeon Graphics, and 8GB of RAM, it's going to be more than enough to handle activities such as doing online research, making reports, and creating presentations. The desktop PC excels in its storage capabilities though, as it's got a 256GB SSD for its primary storage where Windows 11 Home is pre-installed and a 1TB HDD for its secondary storage. That's a lot of space for your files!

Read more
This Lenovo 2-in-1 laptop is discounted from $3,409 to $799
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 7 front angled view showing display.

If you skip past Lenovo's somewhat disingenuously high estimated value system, there are generally some great laptop deals to check out at the site. Right now, you can buy the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga for $799. Lenovo reckons that's reduced from $3,409 which seems excessively high and unlikely to us, but we do know that $799 is a pretty sweet deal for this laptop. If you're keen to know more, keep reading while we take you through what to expect from it. Don't forget to hit the buy button if it sounds like the one for you.

Why you should buy the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 7 Mark Coppock / Digital Trends

Read more
Quick — This 32-inch 4K monitor just had its price slashed by 21%
The 27-inch Dell S2721QS 4K monitor on a table.

Dell often has some great monitor deals and the firm has certainly excelled itself with an offer on the Dell 32-inch SE3223Q 4K monitor. Usually priced at $380, it's down to $300 for a limited time only. A fantastic price for a 4K monitor, you might already know to hit the buy button below but if you need some more guidance, keep reading while we explain what it offers.

Why you should buy the Dell 32-inch SE3223Q 4K monitor
Dell makes some of the best 4K monitors around with the Dell 32-inch SE3223Q 4K monitor reflecting many of those qualities. It offers 99% sRGB on its VA panel with 1.07 billion colors overall. There's also the aforementioned 4K resolution of 3840 x 2160 wide viewing angles and an anti-glare surface. It also has a response time of as little as 4ms gray-to-gray extreme and AMD FreeSync support. While the response rate isn't perfect for a gaming setup, it's fine for some light gaming with AMD FreeSync ensuring you get smooth browsing while you work.

Read more