Sprint is expected to cut operating costs, but to continue investing in infrastructure…
Sprint Spark investment expected to continue per plan
Cost cuts and lower service revenue at the nation’s third-largest carrier are not expected to impact Sprint’s investment in its network. The carrier is still in the early phases of its Sprint Spark buildout, which will aggregate 2.5 GHz spectrum and 800 MHz spectrum. Sprint Spark has already been turned on in a number of markets.
“Our checks have shown the network is more ready for prime time than most give it credit for — especially in some key U.S. markets,” said analyst Jennifer Fritzsche of Wells Fargo Securities. Fritzsche added that Claure’s cost cuts will hit operating expenses, not investment in the network.
That investment is expected to keep a lot of tower crews busy in the months ahead. Providers of wireless infrastructure services say the carrier has been slow out of the gate with its most recent round of network upgrades, and they look forward to seeing the carrier get started in earnest.
Marcelo Claure could help Sprint kick it up a notch. He is widely viewed as an action-oriented leader, a characterization that is supported by his decision to cut prices within a week of taking on his new role.
“It’s encouraging to see Claure’s ‘fail fast’ rather than a ‘wait and see’ attitude,” said analyst Jim Patterson of Patterson Advisory Group. Claure said price cuts for wireless service will happen next week. One big question is whether the carrier will keep unlimited data plans, which its larger rivals no longer offer. Unlimited data is a way for Sprint to differentiate itself.
“With the depth of its spectrum portfolio, we continue to expect the focus of Sprint’s pricing and marketing approach to center on unlimited data offering,” said Jennifer Fritzsche. Claure also referenced Sprint’s spectrum during his remarks yesterday, saying that this asset could enable Sprint to eventually become America’s best network.
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