T-Mobile has awarded a multi-year contract to Nokia Siemens and Ericsson for the installation of 37,000 cell sites as part of a two-year deal. The contracts end in 2013 and are funded by Deutsche Telekom, T-Mobile's parent company.
T-Mobile awarded the contracts as it looks to gain back the 1.65 million customers it lost during 2011 who were on monthly contracts, while not offering the iPhone. Verizon and AT&T offer LTE, the former for over a year and the latter in 35 U.S. markets, while Sprint aims to introduce the service around the middle of 2012 in six markets.
"We're making great progress on our four billion dollar 4G network transformation," T-Mobile's Chief Technology Officer, Neville Ray, said in a press release. Ray added he expects nationwide LTE coverage by 2013. T-Mobile will reuse some of its existing airwaves and include some of the spectrum gained from AT&T.
T-Mobile began to rebrand itself this year, changing the image of its spokesperson and model - Carly Foulkes - by removing her pink dress for black leather. The ad ran the tagline "No more Mr Nice Girl."
The carrier's the first in North America to use Ericsson's AIR technology, improving existing coverage and launching LTE simultaneously. The carrier said it's using AIR because of enhanced radio performance and ease of deployment.
"T-Mobile continue to be at the forefront of 4G innovation and we're excited to continue our long-standing partnership with Ericsson as we modernize our network and deploy LTE in 2013," Ray said.
T-Mobile has made previous deals with Ericsson: in 2006 the two companies worked together to take 3G nationwide, while HSPA+ technology was rolled out in 2010 and 2011.
"This contract marks a significant milestone for Ericsson in North America and further establishes our network leadership in the region. We are excited that our commitment to continued innovation in technology, services and design will further enhance T-Mobile USA's network and extend our long-standing relationship with the carrier," Ericsson's head of North American operation, Angel Ruiz, said.
