RCR Wireless News MBB Philadelphia: Despite uncertainty, T-Mobile USA stays the course

PHILADELPHIA – With the cloud of uncertainty hanging ominously over its operations, you have to hand it to the folks at T-Mobile USA Inc. (DTEGY) that continue to operate with the mindset that everything is business as usual. Sure, AT&T Inc. has said it wants to acquire the nation’s No. 4 operator for a cool $39 billion, but until that deal is hashed out, it’s full steam ahead for the folks from Bellevue, Wash.
This mindset was on display at the recent RCR Wireless News Mobile Broadband Tour stop in Philadelphia where Chris Hillabrant, VP and GM for the Mid-Atlantic region at T-Mobile USA, stopped by to provide some insight into the carrier’s aggressive push in upgrading its network as well as the challenges it faces in growing its network.
Hillabrant noted that T-Mobile USA’s late move into the 3G space has provided it with some advantages for its HSPA+ upgrades as much of the equipment it has deployed was built with the updates in mind. The carrier has also been aggressively pushing fiber backhaul resources to its cell site in order to take full advantage of the 42 megabit per second capabilities of its latest network enhancements.
Hillabrant also touched on T-Mobile USA’s policy of speed throttling on data plans, noting that the solution is consumer friendly in that it does not completely cut off customers that exceed their data allotment, and also provides the opportunity to upsell to a larger plan.