Sprint Continues Network Vision Progress; Selects Vendors to Decommission the iDEN Network
Sprint (NYSE:S) announced today that it has signed agreements with
Goodman Networks, Overland Contracting, Inc., a construction affiliate
of Black & Veatch, Pyramid Network Services LLC and WesTower
Communications Inc. to decommission the companys iDEN network. Under
the terms of the deals, these suppliers will negotiate lease termination
agreements, restore cell site compounds and remove Sprint network
equipment for re-use or recycling.
Sprint recently announced that it plans to cease service on the iDEN
Nextel National Network as early as June 30, 2013, which marks another
major milestone on the path to completing the Sprint Network Vision
plan. Network Vision is a multiyear initiative to provide an enhanced
network experience by improving voice quality and providing faster data
speeds, while creating network flexibility and reducing operating costs.
Network Vision also improves environmental sustainability by reducing
electricity use and driving down greenhouse gas emissions. Todays
announcement underscores Sprints commitment to decommissioning the iDEN
network swiftly and efficiently. To begin preparing for the more robust
network consolidation, the company expects to shut down a total of 9,600
iDEN sites before the end of the third quarter 2012.
After a thorough RFP process, Sprint has selected the best suppliers to
cost-effectively hit our milestones for site shutdown, enabling the
company to exit from those locations at a minimum cost, said John
Harrison, vice president-Network Supplier Performance Management. In
addition, we have taken extra care in selecting these suppliers to
ensure our industry-leading green standards are maintained.
Sprint released an
Stewardship Policy in May 2011, outlining its goal to eliminate all
internal e-waste from its own operations and establishing social and
environmental criteria that its e-waste suppliers must meet.
Sprint continues to facilitate migration of iDEN customers to Sprint
Direct Connect service. Sprint Direct Connect, the industrys newest
push-to-talk (PTT) gold standard, was announced in October 2011. The
service provides broadband data capabilities, familiar push-to-talk
features, and rugged and reliable handset options. Sprint Direct Connect
coverage is expected to broaden throughout 2012.
During the past eight months, Sprint has announced four rugged Sprint
Direct Connect handsets: Kyocera DuraMax, Kyocera DuraCore, Kyocera
DuraPlus and Motorola ADMIRAL, which cater to push-to-talk users. Last
month, Sprint made International Direct Connect available on its Sprint
Direct Connect devices, expanding the reach of push-to-talk capabilities
to and from Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Peru and Chile.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline
communications services, bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers,
businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 56
million customers at the end of the first quarter of 2012 and is widely
recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative
technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national
carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data
services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost
Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international
push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. The American
Customer Satisfaction Index rated Sprint No. 1 among all national
carriers and most improved in customer satisfaction across all
industries during the last four years. Newsweek ranked Sprint No.
3 in its 2011 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nations greenest
companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn
more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com
“Safe Harbor” Statement under the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995
* This news release includes forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the securities laws. The statements in this news release
regarding number of cell sites, network performance, coverage and
capabilities, business and network efficiencies, migration of services
new technologies, timing of deployment, and products and services, as
well as other statements that are not historical facts, are
forward-looking statements. The words estimate, project, forecast,
intend, expect, should, believe, target, and similar
expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements are estimates and projections reflecting
managements judgment based on currently available information and
involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those suggested by the forward-looking
statements. With respect to these forward-looking statements, management
has made assumptions regarding, among other things, timing of
decommissioned towers; development and deployment of new technologies;
efficiencies and cost savings of multimode technologies; customer and
network usage; customer growth and retention; service, coverage and
quality; availability of devices; the timing of various events and the
economic environment. Sprint Nextel believes these forward-looking
statements are reasonable; however, you should not place undue reliance
on forward-looking statements, which are based on current expectations
and speak only as of the date of this release. Sprint Nextel is not
obligated to publicly release any revisions to forward-looking
statements to reflect events after the date of this release. Sprint
Nextel provides a detailed discussion of risk factors in periodic SEC
filings, including in its annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended
Dec. 31, 2011.