USA - Mobile Market - Major Operators

Synopsis

Archived report: this report was archived in December 2010 and has not been updated.

In 2010 the US mobile market remained dominated by Verizon Wireless, AT&T Mobility and Sprint Nextel, together accounting for 74% market share, down from 78% a year earlier. T-Mobile USA was the fourth largest provider with around 12%.

In 3G networks, Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel were dominating with their CDMA2000 technologies, with subscriber numbers outstripping those on the WCDMA technology offered by AT&T Mobility. However, the launch of HSDPA enhancements by AT&T Mobility had begun to significantly close that gap and the launch of HSPA 7.2 would continue to underpin its subscriber growth. Moreover, T-Mobile’s HSPA+ deployments during 2009/10 positioned T-Mobile’s service as the fastest mobile broadband service in the market.

The next battle looming would be in 4G technology, with Sprint Nextel offering WiMAX services on the Clear network to 85% of the largest US markets, while other carriers, notably Verizon Wireless and AT&T Mobility moving towards their LTE launch dates. Mobile data was accounting for an increasing share of company revenues and would continue to do so as mobile broadband services and mobile TV gather momentum.

This report provides analysis and statistics on the US mobile market, together with brief overviews and key operating data of the major operators available as at early 2010.