Sprint Corporation

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Sprint Corporation
Sprint Nextel logo.svg
Works for me (slogan)
Formerly called
Brown Telephone Company (1899-1911)
United Telephone Company (1911-1925)
United Telephone and Electric (1925-1938)
United Utilities, Incorporated (1938-1972)
United Telecommunications (1972-1992)
Sprint Corporation
(1992-2005, 2013-present)
Sprint Nextel Corporation (2005-2013)
Type
Public
Traded as NYSE: S
S&P 500 Component
Industry Telecommunications
Predecessor SPC
GTE Sprint
US Sprint
Embarq
Nextel Communications
Founded June 19, 1899; 118 years ago (as Brown Telephone Company)
Founder Darrin E. Mcduffey
Headquarters Overland Park, Kansas, United States
Area served
United States, Puerto Rico, United States Virgin Islands
Key people
Marcelo Claure (CEO)
Masayoshi Son (Chairman)
Products Wireless communications
Internet services
Long distance[1]
Revenue Decrease US$32.18 billion (2016)[2]
Operating income
Increase US$310 million (2016)[2]
Net income
Increase US$(1.99 billion) (2016)[2]
Total assets Decrease US$78.97 billion (2016)[2]
Total equity Decrease US$19.78 billion (2016)[2]
Number of employees
30,000 (Q1 2016)[2]
Parent SoftBank Group Corp. (80%)
Subsidiaries Boost Worldwide, Inc. (Boost Mobile)
Virgin Mobile USA, L.P. (Virgin Mobile USA)
Website www.sprint.com
Footnotes / references
[1][3]
Sprint Corporation, commonly referred to as Sprint, is an American
telecommunications holding company that provides wireless services and is an
internet service provider. It is the fourth largest mobile network operator in the
United States, and serves 54 million customers as of October 2017.[4] The company
also offers wireless voice, messaging, and broadband services through its various
subsidiaries under the Boost Mobile, Virgin Mobile, and Assurance Wireless brands,
and wholesale access to its wireless networks to mobile virtual network operators.
The company is headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas. In July 2013, a majority of
the company was purchased by Japanese telecommunications company SoftBank Group
Corp.,[5] although the remaining shares of the company continue to trade on the New
York Stock Exchange.[citation needed]. Sprint is a CDMA carrier which uses CDMA,
EvDO and 4G LTE networks.
Sprint traces its origins to the Brown Telephone Company, which was founded in 1899
to deploy telephone service to the rural area around Abilene, Kansas. In 2006,
Sprint exited the local landline telephone business, spinning those assets off into
a newly created company named Embarq, which later became a part of CenturyLink. The
company continues to be one of the largest long distance providers in the United
States.
Prior to 2005, the company was also known as the Sprint Corporation, but took the
name Sprint Nextel Corporation when it merged with Nextel Communications that year.
In 2013, following the shutdown of the Nextel network and concurrent with the
acquisition by SoftBank, the company returned to using simply Sprint Corporation.
In July 2013, as part of the SoftBank transactions, Sprint acquired the remaining
shares of wireless broadband carrier Clearwire Corporation which it did not already
own.
On August 6, 2014, it was announced that CEO Dan Hesse would be replaced by Marcelo
Claure, effective August 11, 2014. Claure is the founder and former CEO of wireless
supplier Brightstar.[6]
Contents [hide]
1 History
1.1 Foundation and early years
1.2 Growth
1.3 Bankruptcy and reorganization
1.4 United Telecommunications (United Telecom)
1.5 Southern Pacific Communications and introduction of Sprint
1.6 Consolidation and renaming to Sprint Corporation
1.7 Expansion into Canada
1.8 Return to wireless
1.9 Partnerships and more consolidation
1.10 Merger of Sprint Corporation and Nextel Communications
1.10.1 Affiliate acquisitions and settlements
1.11 Consolidation to Overland Park
1.12 Acquisition by SoftBank Corporation
1.12.1 Additional acquisitions
2 Wireline operations
2.1 SprintLink
2.2 Ethernet services
2.3 Sprint Web Services
2.4 IoT & Connected Services
2.5 Telecommunications Relay Services
3 Wireless operations
3.1 Sprint branded services
3.2 Sprint Prepaid Group
3.2.1 Boost Mobile
3.2.2 Virgin Mobile and Assurance Wireless
3.3 Sprint Smart Velocity
4 Wireless wholesale operations and affiliates
4.1 Sprint Rural Alliance
4.2 Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs)
4.2.1 Bring Your Own Sprint Device
4.2.2 Custom Branded Device Program
4.3 Data roaming agreements
5 Wireless networks
5.1 CDMA/1xRTT/EVDO/eHRPD
5.2 LTE
5.2.1 LTE Plus (previously Sprint Spark)
6 Wireless products and services
6.1 Mobile devices
6.2 Broadband for the home via Sprint Mobile
6.3 Sprint Music Plus
6.4 Google Play
6.5 Sprint Airave and Magic Box
7 Defunct brands and Networks
7.1 Common Cents Mobile
7.2 Nextel Direct Connect
7.3 CLEAR
7.4 Discontinued Networks
7.4.1 iDEN network
7.4.2 WiMAX
8 Controversies
8.1 Device unlocking
8.2 Lack of SIM purchase options
8.3 FCC fine over Do Not Call rule breaches
8.4 Law compliance
9 Marketing
9.1 Social media
9.1.1 Ninja program
9.2 Advertising
9.3 Sponsorships
9.3.1 Film
9.3.2 Music
9.3.3 Sports
9.3.4 Television
10 See also
11 References
12 External links
History[edit]

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Foundation and early years[edit]
Sprint Corporation traces its origins to the Brown Telephone Company, which was
founded in 1899 by Cleyson Brown and Jacob Brown to deploy telephone service to the
rural area around Abilene, KS.[7] The Browns installed their first long-distance
circuit in 1900 and chartered their own company in October 1902.
In March 1903, they joined with 14 other Kansas independents to incorporate the
Union Telephone and Telegraph Company, which would provide long-distance service to
Kansas City.
In September 1911, C.L. Brown consolidated the Brown Telephone Company with three
other independents to form the second largest telephone company in Kansas, the
United Telephone Company, which controlled seven major telephone exchanges.
Growth[edit]
C.L. Brown formed United Telephone and Electric (UT&E) in 1925 in order to purchase
stock in subsidiary companies across widely scattered geographical areas. Brown's
UT&E eventually controlled more than 68 other companies, more than two-thirds of
which were telephone companies.
Bankruptcy and reorganization[edit]
The Great Depression caused more than three million telephone subscribers to give
up their phone service between 1931 and 1933. Consequently, UT&E suffered severe
financial strain and had to seek protection to reorganize under bankruptcy laws.
All but six of UT&E's 85 companies survived, with some showing profits again in
1936. During the reorganization, a number of companies were merged and later phased
out. The reorganization plan received final approval in late 1937.
UT&E was dissolved, and its assets were placed in a newly formed company, United
Utilities, Incorporated, in 1938.
United Telecommunications (United Telecom)[edit]

United Telephone System logo until 1987

When Paul H. Henson became president of United Utilities in 1964, he almost
immediately reorganized the company in accordance with C.L. Browns belief that
centralizing some of the companys functions would result in greater efficiency,
cost reductions, and growth. In 1972, United Utilities changed its name to United
Telecommunications, commonly referred to as "United Telecom". In 1980, United
Telecom launched a national X.25 data service, Uninet. To enter the long-distance
voice market, United Telecom acquired ISACOMM in 1981 and US Telephone in 1984. In
1983, United Telecom began offering cellular telephone services in their
territories under the brand name "Telespectrum".
Southern Pacific Communications and introduction of Sprint[edit]

Wallet card with access info summary

Southern Pacific Communications Company (SPC), a unit of the Southern Pacific
Transportation Company, began providing long-distance telephone service after the
Execunet II decision late in 1978. SPC was headquartered on Adrian Court in
Burlingame, California, where Sprint still maintains its Sprint Applied Research &
Advanced Technology Labs.
Southern Pacific maintained an extensive microwave communications system along its
rights-of-way that the railroad used for internal communications. After the
Execunet II decision, Southern Pacific expanded its internal communications network
by laying fiber optic cables along the same rights-of-way. In 1972, Southern
Pacific Communications began selling surplus system capacity to corporations for
use as private lines, circumventing AT&T's then-monopoly on public telephony. Prior
attempts at offering long distance voice services had not been approved by the U.S.
Federal Communications Commission (FCC), although a fax service (called SpeedFAX)
was permitted.[citation needed]
Southern Pacific Communications was only permitted to provide private line
services, not switched services. After MCI Communications won the court battle
giving MCI the right to begin offering Execunet services, Southern Pacific
Communications took the Federal Communications Commission to court to get the right
to offer switched services, and succeeded (the "Execunet II" decision). Southern
Pacific Communications decided they needed a new name to differentiate the switched
voice service from SpeedFAX, and ran an internal contest to select a name. The
winning entry was "SPRINT", an acronym for Southern Pacific Railroad Internal
Network Telecommunications.[8]
The Sprint service was first marketed in six metropolitan areas: New York City,
Boston, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Anaheim. The first three switches
were purchased from Danray, in Plano, Texas, and were located in Los Angeles, New
York and Chicago. A customer was required to have a private line connection to one
of these switches in order to use the service and paid an access fee per private
line. Access was also available by dialing an access number to connect to the
SPRINT switch. Customers were then billed at 2.6 cents per tenth of a minute
increment.[citation needed]
Consolidation and renaming to Sprint Corporation[edit]

Sprint Corporation brand mark (1987-2005)

In 1982, SPC and GTE entered into merger negotiations, and in 1983, GTE purchased
SPC and renamed the company GTE Sprint Communications Corporation (or "GTE
Sprint").
GTE had acquired a national X.25 provider Telenet in 1979. In 1986, GTE Sprint and
Telenet merged with the United Telecom properties US Telecom, Uninet, and ISACOMM,
forming US Sprint. This was a joint venture co-owned by GTE and United Telecom. In
1988, United Telecom sold Telespectrum to Centel to fund the purchase of an
additional 30% of US Sprint. This purchase gave United Telecom operational control
of US Sprint.
In 1989, United Telecom purchased a controlling interest, and in 1991, it completed
its acquisition of US Sprint. On February 26, 1992, United Telecommunications
adopted the nationally recognized identity of its long distance unit US Sprint,
changing its name to Sprint Corporation, due in large part to the increased brand
recognition as a result of the successful Candice Bergen "Dime Lady" advertisement
campaign.
Expansion into Canada[edit]
Main article: Sprint Canada
Sprint Corporation entered the Canadian market in the early 1990s as a reseller of
bulk long-distance telephone lines that it bought from domestic companies. Under
Canadian foreign ownership regulations, Sprint could not open its own network. In
1993, Sprint entered into a strategic alliance with Call-Net Enterprises, a
Canadian long-distance service, and bought 25 percent of the company. Call-Nets
long-distance service was renamed Sprint Canada, and expanded to include landline
and internet services. In 2005, Call-Net and Sprint Canadas 600,000 customers were
acquired by Rogers Communications.[9]
Return to wireless[edit]
In 1993, Sprint acquired Centel, allowing Sprint to provide local service in a
total of 18 states, putting them back in the wireless market. In 1994, Sprint spun
off their existing cellular operations as "360 Communications" for regulatory
reasons, in order to start a new service in the PCS band. In 1998, 360
Communications was acquired by Alltel, which was in turn acquired by Verizon in
2009.
In late 1994 and early 1995, Sprint acquired near nationwide 1900Mhz PCS spectrum,
via Sprint SpectrumAPC (a joint venture between Sprint and several cable
companies). Later in 1995, the company began to offer wireless service under the
Sprint Spectrum brand in the Baltimore-Washington metropolitan area. This was the
first commercial PCS network in the United States. Although the current Sprint PCS
service is CDMA, the original Washington-area network used GSM. Eventually, Sprint
launched its new nationwide CDMA network, then in 1999 sold the decommissioned GSM
infrastructure to Omnipoint which re-launched in May 2000. Omnipoint was later
acquired by VoiceStream Wireless, which eventually became part of T-Mobile USA.
Partnerships and more consolidation[edit]
In September 1996, Sprint announced a deal with RadioShack, and in 1997, Sprint
stores opened at RadioShack to offer communications services and products across
the United States. Since then, over 20 million Sprint cell phones have been sold
via the RadioShack outlets. RadioShack was one of the first retailers to offer
Sprint services and an all-digital nationwide network for its customers.
On October 5, 1999, Sprint and MCI WorldCom announced a $129 billion merger
agreement between the two companies. The deal would have been the largest corporate
merger in history at the time. However, due to pressure from the United States
Department of Justice and the European Union on concerns of it creating a monopoly,
the deal did not go through.
In 1999, Sprint began recombining its local telecom, long distance, wireline, and
wireless business units into a new company, in an initiative known internally as
"One Sprint". In April 2004, the separately traded wireless tracking stock PCS was
absorbed into the New York Stock Exchange FON ticker symbol, Sprint's former ticker
symbol (FON stood for "Fiber Optic Network", but was also a homophone of the word
"phone"). This was challenged in many lawsuits by Sprint PCS shareholders who felt
their stock was devalued because it was trading at the ratio of 1 share of PCS
stock for 1/2 share of FON stock. The PCS shareholders claimed a loss of 1.3
billion to 3.4 billion dollars.
Merger of Sprint Corporation and Nextel Communications[edit]
On December 15, 2004, Sprint Corporation and Nextel Communications announced they
would merge to form Sprint Nextel Corporation. While billed as a merger of equals,
the merger was transacted as purchase of Nextel Communications by Sprint
Corporation for tax reasons; Sprint purchased 50.1 percent of Nextel. At the time
of the merger announcement, Sprint and Nextel were the third and fifth leading
providers in the U.S. mobile phone industry, respectively.
Sprint shareholders approved the merger on July 13, 2005. The merger deal was
approved by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and U.S. Department of
Justice on August 3, 2005. The FCC approved the merger on the condition that Sprint
Nextel was to provide wireless service via the 2.5 GHz band within four years.
Sprint Nextel was formed on August 12, 2005, when the deal was completed.
Sprint and Nextel faced opposition to the merger, mostly from regional affiliates
that provided wireless services on behalf of the companies. These regional
affiliates felt that the new company would be violating non-compete agreements that
the former companies had made with the affiliates.
On September 1, 2005, Sprint Nextel combined plan offerings of its Sprint and
Nextel brands to bring uniformity across the company's offerings.
Nextel has licensed its identity to NII Holdings, Inc., of which Sprint Nextel
owned 18%. NII has used the Nextel brand to set up networks in many Latin American
countries. Following Sprint's purchase of Nextel, Nextel sold all of its investment
in NII Holdings.
The integration process was difficult due to disparate network technologies. Sprint
tried to address this with the advent of PowerSource phones. These phones routed
voice call and data services over Sprint's PCS spectrum, while maintaining
DirectConnect services over 800 MHz spectrum. However, this was not sufficient in
coverage, due to the inability to roam on non-PCS spectrum. Soon after the merger,
top Nextel Executives began leaving the company immediately after the merger
closed. Tim Donahue, Nextel CEO, stayed on as executive chairman, but ceded
decision-making authority to Gary D. Forsee. Tom Kelly, COO of Nextel, took an
interim staff position as Chief Strategy Officer. Two years after the merger, only
a few key Nextel executives remained, with many former Nextel middle- and upper-
level managers having left, citing reasons including unbridgeable cultural
difference between the two companies.
In 2006, Sprint spun off its local telephone operations, including the former
United Telephone companies and Centel, as Embarq.
Sprint's acquisition of Nextel was a disaster from a fiscal standpoint in 2008,
the company wrote down $29.7 billion of the $36 billion sum it had paid for Nextel
in 2005, wiping out 80 percent of the value of Nextel at the time it had been
acquired.[10] The write down reflected the depreciation in Nextel's goodwill since
the date of acquisition.[11]
Affiliate acquisitions and settlements[edit]
Prior to their merger, Sprint and Nextel were dependent on a network of affiliated
companies. Following the announcement of the merger agreement, some of these
affiliates came forward with a strong opposition to the Sprint-Nextel merger on the
grounds that the merged company might violate existing agreements or significantly
undercut earnings to these affiliates. In order for Sprint Nextel to allay some of
this opposition, they initiated discussions of either acquiring some of these
affiliates or renegotiating existing agreements. In several cases, the newly formed
company was forced to acquire affiliated companies in exchange for their dropping
their opposition to the merger. Foresee said that the company would likely have to
acquire all of its remaining affiliates.
In 2005, Sprint Nextel acquired three of its ten wireless affiliates: US Unwired,
acquired in August; Gulf Coast Wireless, acquired in October; and IWO Holdings,
acquired in October. Alamosa PCS, which Sprint Nextel acquired on February 2, 2006,
was the largest of its affiliate carriers. Other acquired affiliates include
Ubiquitel, iPCS, Enterprise, and Northern. Of Sprint's original ten affiliates,
only two, Shentel and Swiftel, now remain.
Below are companies which Sprint Corporation has agreed to acquire or has already
acquired:
August 12, 2005: Sprint acquires the Sprint PCS affiliate US Unwired for $1.3B,
thus adding 500,000 additional direct customers to Sprint Nextel.[12]
August 30, 2005: Sprint Nextel announces its intention to acquire IWO Holdings,
Inc., a mainly New England-based network affiliate for the Sprint PCS business. The
acquisition closed on October 20, 2005.
Sprint Nextel acquires Gulf Coast Wireless, adding 95,000 customers, mainly in
Louisiana and Mississippi, to Sprint Nextel's CDMA network. The acquisition closed
on October 3, 2005.
November 21, 2005: Sprint Nextel announces a $4.3-billion acquisition agreement for
Texas-based Sprint PCS affiliate Alamosa Holdings, potentially adding 1.48 million
customers to Sprint Nextel.[13]
December 16, 2005: Sprint Nextel announces a $98 million agreement to acquire
Enterprise Communications of Columbus, Georgia, thus adding over 52,000 customers
to the company's PCS Wireless division.[14]
December 16, 2005: Sprint Nextel announces acquisition of non-affiliate Velocita
Wireless. The transaction enhances the iDEN network's 900 MHz spectrum position.
[15] On July 2, 2007, Velocita Wireless, which became an indirect subsidiary of
Sprint Nextel, was acquired by United Wireless Holdings, Inc.[16]
December 21, 2005: Sprint Nextel Corporation and Nextel Partners, Inc. reach an
agreement for a $6.5 billion deal whereby the Sprint Nextel Corporation acquires
the largest of Nextel's affiliates to end Nextel Partners' opposition to any
changes by Sprint in relation to the Sprint-Nextel merger. Once completed, the
Nextel Partners deal adds more than 2 million customers directly to the Sprint
Nextel company.[17]
April 20, 2006: Sprint Nextel Corporation and Ubiquitel PCS Corporation reach an
agreement whereby the Sprint Nextel Corporation acquires Ubiquitelpcs, an exclusive
Sprint PCS provider.[18]
March 17, 2007: Sprint Nextel Corporation completes integration of Nextel Partners
customers into the Sprint Nextel system. Nextel Partners' Las Vegas headquarters
shuts down service, and all Nextel Partners customers are now handled through the
new "Ensemble" billing system. All Nextel Partners customers are now Sprint Nextel
customers and are entitled to the same promotions as all other Sprint Nextel iDEN
customers.
August 2, 2007: Sprint Nextel Corporation completes the acquisition of Northern PCS
for $312.5 million including debt.[19]
July 28, 2009: Sprint Nextel announces a $483 million acquisition agreement for
Virgin Mobile USA, adding 5 million pre-paid customers to Sprint Nextel, although
these subscribers were counted in Sprint's total subscriber count, as Virgin Mobile
USA was an MVNO on Sprint's CDMA network.[20]
October 19, 2009: Sprint Nextel agrees to acquire iPCS, one of its last remaining
affiliates.[21]
Consolidation to Overland Park[edit]

3Sprint World Headquarters Campus in Overland Park, Kansas, designed by RMJM

Hillier
After the Sprint-Nextel merger, the company maintained an executive headquarters in
Reston, Virginia and operational headquarters in Overland Park, Kansas. Sprint CEO
Dan Hesse recognized that having two headquarters was not helping the merger
effort, sent the wrong message to employees and contributed to the post-merger
cultural clash. To resolve the problem, Hesse decided to consolidate all
headquarters operations in the Sprint World Headquarters Campus located in Overland
Park, Kansas,[22] a suburb in the Kansas City metropolitan area.
Acquisition by SoftBank Corporation[edit]
On October 14, 2012, the Japanese telecommunications company SoftBank announced it
intended to purchase 70% of Sprint Nextel Corporation for $20.1 billion.[23]
SoftBank states that Sprint will remain a separate entity, will remain a CDMA
carrier and will continue executing Sprint's plan to become an all-LTE carrier by
2017.[24] On April 15, 2013, Dish Network announced a higher bid for Sprint Nextel
than the offer placed by SoftBank, with an $25.5 billion offer. On June 18, 2013,
DISH retracted its bid and decided that it would instead focus on its intent to
purchase Clearwire, however on June 26, 2013, DISH also retracted its bid for
Clearwire, leaving the road clear for SoftBank to acquire the company. The United
States Federal Communications Commission approved SoftBank's acquisition of a stake
in Sprint. The FCC's acting chairwoman Mignon Clyburn and commissioner Ajit Pai
both gave statements vociferously supporting the acquisition, saying the deal
"serve[s] the public interest".[25] The acquisition was completed on July 10, 2013.
On August 6, 2013, SoftBank purchased approximately 2% more shares of Sprint
Corporation, increasing its ownership stake in the company to 80%.[26]
Additional acquisitions[edit]
On November 7, 2012, Sprint Nextel announced the acquisition of 20 MHz of spectrum
and 585,000 customers from US Cellular in Chicago, St. Louis, central Illinois and
three other Midwest markets. The deal was expected to close in mid-2013.[27]
Prior to July 9, 2013, Sprint Nextel only owned a 50.8% equity interest in
Clearwire Corporation; On December 17, 2012, Sprint Nextel agreed to pay US$2.97
per share, US$2.2 billion in total, to purchase the portion of Clearwire shares
that Sprint Nextel did not already own. On June 20, 2013, Sprint Nextel increased
its offer to $5 per share, the transaction was approved by regulators on July 5,
2013, and closed on July 9, 2013, and Sprint Nextel became the complete owner of
Clearwire and its assets.
On March 31, 2015, the U.S. bankruptcy court approved a $160 million takeover of
electronics store chain RadioShack by Standard General; as part of the deal, the
company entered into a partnership with Sprint to serve as co-tenants in 1,435 of
its locations, beginning on April 10, 2015. Roughly a third of the retail space in
each location is dedicated to Sprint products and services, and the stores will
ultimately adopt Sprint as their primary brand in place of RadioShack. Sprint
stated that this deal would increase the company's retail footprint by more than
double.[28][29]
On January 23, 2017, Sprint announced that they were buying a 33 percent stake in
the music streaming service Tidal.[30]
On February 17, 2017, it was reported by Reuters that Softbank was considering
selling its majority share in the company to Deutsche Telekom, which would
effectively merge the carrier with T-Mobile US.[31] However, after months of
speculation and rumors about a potential deal being reached, both Sprint and T-
Mobile announced on November 4th, 2017, that while they have had discussions about
a merger, they have both decided to end talks about any mergers with each other due
to not being able to agree on the terms of the combined deal[32] (Softbank's board
of directors reportedly held a vote on October 27th where they decided not to give
up control of Sprint[33]).
Wireline operations[edit]
Sprint derives revenue as a wireline IP network operator and as a long distance
telephony provider. Sprint Nextel is the United States' fourth largest long
distance provider by subscribers.[34]
In 2006, Sprint Nextel exited the local landline telephone business, spinning those
assets off into a newly created company named Embarq, which CenturyTel acquired in
2008 to form CenturyLink.
SprintLink[edit]
SprintLink is a global Tier 1 Internet service provider network, operating an
100G[35] Internet backbone. Customers include large multinational corporations,
government agencies, retail and restaurant chains, Tier 2 and Tier 3 ISPs, and
medium-to-small businesses. SprintLink has physical presence in 155 countries,
including the United States, Western Europe, East Asia, Australia, and India.[36]
The network wraps all the way around the world with buried fiber optics in the
United States and Europe, and undersea fiber in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian
Oceans. SprintLink is responsible for cable maintenance and administration in the
TAT-14 Consortium. Sprint is upgrading its SprintLink core to 100Gbit/sec lines to
offer increased bandwidth.[37]
Ethernet services[edit]
In 2007, Sprint launched Ethernet services over their IP/MPLS network to an initial
40-markets. Sprint later expanded their Ethernet services to 65 markets in
September 2011.[38] Sprint then launched Ethernet over copper and Ethernet over
DOCSIS in 2016 to compliment its Fiber Ethernet offerings.[39]
Sprint Web Services[edit]
Sprint offers its enterprise customers managed web based services through its
Sprint Web Services[40] program. It allows enterprise customers to create managed
web-based applications
IoT & Connected Services[edit]
In 2015, Sprint powered the Connected Officer program for the Los Angeles Police
Department in partnership with Samsung, VMware, and Prodapt.[41]
Telecommunications Relay Services[edit]
Sprint wireline is also responsible for traditional telecommunications relay
service (TRS), speech to speech relay service (STS), and captioned telephone
service (CTS). Sprint is in the process of upgrading these services from a TDM
network to an IP based network[42]
Wireless operations[edit]

This "Sprint Store by ccComm" located in Hillsboro, Oregon sells Sprint-branded

wireless products and services exclusively.
Sprint branded services[edit]
Sprint Corporation offers post paid wireless voice and data services primarily
under the Sprint brand.
Sprint Prepaid Group[edit]
The Sprint Prepaid Group is a division of the company formed in May 2010 that is
responsible for the operations of Sprint's pre-pay subsidiaries. SPG's branded
products and services are sold via web and available at retailers nationwide,
including Best Buy, Walmart, Target and other independent dealers.
Boost Mobile[edit]
Main article: Boost Mobile
Boost Worldwide, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sprint that provides
nationwide, prepaid wireless voice, messaging and broadband data products and
services to customers in the continental United States under the Boost Mobile
brand. The services are provided as an MVNO hosted on the Sprint-owned CDMA, EVDO,
WiMAX, LTE, and now the Sprint LTE Plus Network.
Virgin Mobile and Assurance Wireless[edit]
Main article: Virgin Mobile USA
Virgin Mobile USA, L.P. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sprint Corporation which
provides nationwide, prepaid wireless voice, messaging, and broadband data products
and services to customers in the continental United States under the Virgin Mobile,
payLo, and "Assurance Wireless Brought to You by Virgin Mobile" brands. It operates
as an MVNO that provides services to its customers via the Sprint-owned CDMA, EVDO,
WiMAX, and LTE networks.[43] Virgin Mobile USA targets younger consumers and serves
approximately 6 million users.[citation needed]
Virgin Mobile USA, L.P. also offers lifeline telephone service subsidized by the
U.S. Federal Communications Commission's Universal Service Fund under the
"Assurance Wireless Brought to You by Virgin Mobile" brand. The program offers a
free wireless phone and 250 free local and domestic long distance voice minutes per
month to eligible low-income customers in 31 states. End users do not receive a
bill, nor are they required to sign a contract, and do not pay activation fees,
recurring fees, or surcharges.[44]
Sprint Smart Velocity[edit]
Sprint Velocity is Sprint Corporation's Connected Vehicle Platform.
Wireless wholesale operations and affiliates[edit]
Sprint Corporation provides services using both its own spectrum and network
equipment through affiliate agreements. Smaller affiliated companies operate their
own network assets and retail operations but offer services to customers in their
geographic region under the Sprint brand.
In the early stages of network build-out, the company relied significantly on
network partners known as affiliates to rapidly expand its coverage. These
affiliates would lease Sprint's PCS spectrum licenses in a specific geographic
area, typically rural areas and smaller cities, and provide wireless service using
the Sprint brand. Sprint provided back-end support such as billing and telephone-
based customer service, while the affiliates built and maintained the network, sold
equipment to customers, and staffed the retail stores in their specific regions.
Its customers could "roam" across Sprint-operated and affiliate-operated portions
of the network without being aware of the distinction, and vice versa. Outwardly,
efforts were made to make it appear as if the network was operated by a single
entity under the Sprint name, though complex revenue-sharing agreements were in
place which were very similar in nature to cross-carrier roaming tariffs. In later
years, the relationship between Sprint and its affiliates grew contentious,
particularly after Sprint's acquisition of Nextel.
CDMA Affiliates: Swiftel Communications in Brookings, South Dakota;[45] Shentel in
northern Virginia, and parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland and West Virginia.
Sprint Rural Alliance[edit]
Sprint Rural Alliance (SRA) members (aka Sprint Partners) are those carriers who
use their own equipment and also sell their own service under their own name while
using Sprint spectrum. Sprint is given access to the SRA network in return for
allowing use of Sprint spectrum. This allows Sprint to keep the spectrum license
for the geographic area being served by the SRA member.
SRA Members: Alaska DigiTel in Alaska.
Former SRA Members: Alltel Wireless in Montana. This portion of the network was
obtained by AT&T during the merger of Alltel and Verizon Wireless. Pioneer Cellular
in Kansas and Oklahoma ended their agreement with Sprint on March 1, 2012. They
have since transitioned to an agreement with Verizon Wireless through the LTE in
Rural America program. nTelos that operated in West Virginia and western Virginia
was bought out and merged with Shentel which is a Sprint Affiliate.
Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs)[edit]
Sprint Corporation provides wholesales capacity on its CDMA2000, EVDO, and LTE
wireless networks to mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs), which allows other
wireless providers to utilize its networks to offer its services. Sprint's prepaid
brands also operate using Sprint's networks, however they are not MVNOs, but rather
wholly owned prepaid subsidiaries of the company.
Bring Your Own Sprint Device[edit]
Sprint Corporation allows certain Sprint MVNOs to accept and activate old Sprint-
branded phones through its "Bring Your Own Sprint Device" program which was
established for Sprint's initiative to further reduce the number of cell phones
that are thrown away each year. The program is also beneficial to MVNOs customers
who do not want to pay subsidized prices.[46]
Custom Branded Device Program[edit]
Sprint Corporation offers its MVNOs a program called the "Custom Branded Device
Program", which gives MVNOs access to completely unbranded Android smartphones with
no references to Sprint; the MVNO can then customize with its own branded apps and
services through Sprint's Mobile ID and Mobile Zone products. Though these phones
are free of Sprint branding, they continue to be certified to run on Sprint
networks.[47]
Data roaming agreements[edit]
On May 9, 2006, Sprint Nextel and Alltel agreed on a new Nationwide Roaming
partnership.[48][49] The new roaming agreement is for voice and 1x and EV-DO data
roaming coverage. This is different from the voice-only roaming agreement between
Alltel and Verizon Wireless in that it is reciprocal, giving Alltel customers
access to the Sprint 1x and EV-DO network, and Sprint customers access to Alltel's
denser, rural 1x and EV-DO voice and data coverage. This agreement represents the
first of its kind between U.S. wireless carriers.[citation needed] Although Alltel
merged with Verizon Wireless in 2008, one of the conditions of the merger was that
Verizon would honor all preexisting agreements between Alltel and other companies.
The roaming reciprocity agreement between Alltel and Sprint is set to expire in
2016.
Sprint and Verizon Wireless have a reciprocal data roaming agreement[50] that
allows for the use of Sprint Power Vision content like TV, movie downloads, and
stream radio in Verizon 1x coverage areas.
Sprint and U.S. Cellular also have a 1xRTT, EVDO and LTE data and voice roaming
agreement. Sprint has a LTE roaming agreement with AT&T, which is typically limited
to 3G speeds. Cases of where Sprint phones are roaming on Verizon for voice and
AT&T for data have been observed in 2017.
Wireless networks[edit]
Further information: LTE frequency bands
The following is a list of known 3G and LTE frequencies which Sprint employs in the
United States:
Frequency Band Band Number Protocol Generation Status Notes
800 MHz ESMR 10 1xAdvanced 3G Active For voice and low-speed data
(<150kbit/s).[51]
26 LTE 4G LTE band for "range" and better indoor coverage.
1900 MHz PCS 2 1xRTT/1xAdvanced/EVDO/eHRPD 3G In the process of
refarming to LTE.
25 LTE/LTE Advanced 4G "Primary" LTE band.[52]
2.5 GHz BRS/EBS 41 TD-LTE/LTE Advanced 4G Sprint 8T8R Deployment
Underway.[53] 3x20 Carrier Aggregation deployed.[54] Marketed as "LTE Plus".[55]
CDMA/1xRTT/EVDO/eHRPD[edit]
Sprint operates a nationwide CDMA network in the 1900 MHz PCS band. In 2006,
Sprint's EV-DO "Power Vision" network reached more than 190 million people. Sprint
then continued to upgrade their 3G EV-DO network until it reached 260 million
people in 2007. Today, Sprint covers over 300 million POPs with EV-DO services.
Sprint has recently added eHRPD to its network (EV-DO routed through an LTE core
network) in order to facilitate smooth handoffs between LTE and EV-DO.
LTE[edit]
On July 28, 2011, Sprint announced that it had decided to end its roll out of the
4G network using WiMAX technology, in favor of more internationally accepted LTE
technology. Sprint had also announced that it entered into a 15-year agreement that
included spectrum hosting, network services, 4G wholesale and 3G roaming, with
LightSquared, although that deal was later dissolved due to regulatory issues which
LightSquared was unable to resolve with the FCC.[citation needed]
Sprint announced initial LTE deployment plans at the Sprint Strategy Update
conference on October 7, 2011. Network Vision-partner Samsung began LTE deployments
on October 27, 2011, in Chicago, Illinois.[56] Sprint projected that the LTE
network would cover 123 million people in 2012 and over 250 million people by the
end of 2013.
On January 5, 2012, Sprint announced via Twitter its first 4G LTE markets, that
included Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio; on June 27, 2012, Sprint stated
that it will launch its new 4G LTE network in the first five markets the following
month and on July 15, 2012, Sprint commenced operating the LTE network. In addition
to the five announced markets, it was launched in 10 other markets, with more
markets to be covered by the end of the year.[citation needed]
Sprint initially deployed LTE in the 1900 MHz G block and over time has added LTE
to its 1900 MHz A-F blocks. Sprint has also deployed LTE in the 800 MHz ESMR band
and the 2500 MHz band it acquired from Clearwire under the name LTE Plus.[57]
In February 2013, Sprint's Prepaid Group, which operate Virgin Mobile USA and Boost
Mobile, began offering products and services using Sprint's LTE network.[58]
Today, Sprint covers more than 300 million POPs with LTE services.
LTE Plus (previously Sprint Spark)[edit]
On October 30, 2013, Sprint announced that it would begin offering devices that are
capable of accessing its 2.5 GHz LTE network to post-paid subscribers in the
following month. This service, previously called "Sprint Spark", was first
announced with limited availability. Sprint more recently rebranded this service as
"LTE Plus", demonstrating peak speeds of more than 250 Mbit/s. Sprint has also
announced three-channel carrier aggregation and demonstrated a 295 Mbit/s download
speed on their HTC 10 smartphone. Today, Sprint Corporation's LTE Plus service is
available in more than 150 markets. Most users with LTE Plus enabled phones are
still unable to use LTE data while on a voice call. Calling Plus has been
introduced to select Android phones, which allows for voice to use LTE but is more
limited than VoLTE, as HD Voice is disabled, and Wi-Fi/Wi-Fi calling must be
enabled, as well as the phones having harder hand-offs from Wi-Fi to LTE, as
opposed from LTE to Wi-Fi. [59]. Sprint has made no announcements to a time frame
as to when VoLTE will be launched.[60]
Wireless products and services[edit]
Mobile devices[edit]
Sprint has a variety of wireless and mobile broadband products selection from a
full range of manufactures, that are preloaded with the largest mobile operating
systems including Google's Android, Apple's iOS, and Microsoft's Windows Phone.
Sprint partner device manufactures include Apple, BlackBerry, HTC, Kyocera, LG,
Motorola, Samsung, Sharp, Sonim, and ZTE.
Broadband for the home via Sprint Mobile[edit]
In order to offer broadband directly to the home, Sprint launched a co-branded
Broadband[61] Wireless Access Point device along with Linksys, a unit of Cisco
Systems. This unit allows Sprint customers to set up a special[clarification
needed] in a home or office computer network, connecting multiple computers or
laptops wirelessly to Sprint's PowerVision network. This broadband service to the
Internet will allow some customers to have broadband without paying for telephone
service. The PowerVision router may allow one to bypass the local telephone and
cable broadband service providers. Such Broadband offerings to the home or office
without cable or DSL means the router could be used to provide cheaper VoIP
services through Sprint's High Speed network.
Sprint Music Plus[edit]
On October 31, 2005, the Sprint Music Store was launched. Initial record-label
participation included EMI Music, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group,
and Universal Music Group. On November 1, 2006, after one year of service, the
Sprint music store had sold more than 8 million songs, partly thanks to the five
free songs it offered customers at launch.[62] On April 1, 2007, the Sprint Music
Store started offering music downloads at the price of 99 cents per track to
customers who agreed to subscribe to a Vision pack of $15 or higher. Sprint Music
Store is[when?] available for all Android 3G and 4G phones, and for the BlackBerry
Style 9670 phones, and was launched as the Sprint Music Plus service in 2011,
powered by RealNetworks. It offers full track music files from various labels
(albums and single tracks), ringback tones, and ringtones. An icon on BlackBerry
phones for Sprint Music Store directs users to a page describing that Sprint will
release a version of Sprint Music Store soon. In 2011, the Sprint Music Store
became available for the BlackBerry Bold 9650.
Google Play[edit]
As of May 16, 2012, Sprint has allowed subscribers to bill application purchases
from Google Play to their phone account.[63]
Sprint Airave and Magic Box[edit]
On September 17, 2007, Sprint Nextel launched the Airave, which increased cell
reception over an area of 5,000 square feet (460 m2) and could handle up to three
calls at once by hooking into an existing broadband connection and using VOIP. The
Airave helped eliminate poor signal quality inside buildings. Airave was used only
for voice calls using a Sprint CDMA phone and was unavailable for Nextel iDEN
phones or data cards/USB modems. By default, the Airave unit allowed any Sprint
phone to connect through it, but it could be reconfigured to accept only
connections from up to 50 authorized numbers in order to eliminate unwanted use. It
should be noted that the Airrave uses the customers' own bandwidth to connect
callspotentially slowing internet speeds on less ample connections, and causing
the customer to essentially subsidize the Sprint network.[64] That being said,
Sprint is one of the only carriers that historically has not charged its customers
for this type of device if the customer can demonstrate that Sprint coverage is
inadequate where they live.
Airave 2.0 is a device that supports up to six devices simultaneously and data
usage. The device requires a land based internet service (such as DSL or Cable
Modem) to produce the CDMA signal. The Airave 2.5 improved reliability and had two
LAN ports. [65]
Airave 3.0 is a device that broadcasts both CDMA and LTE using band 41 that was
approved by the FCC in late 2016 [66] and became available in 2017 [67]. It
requires a cable internet connection and includes a WAN RJ45 port and two RJ45
ethernet LAN ports.
The Magic Box creates its own Band 41 LTE signal and uses Band 41 or Band 25 LTE
signal instead of a cable connection for internet. It is designed to be placed on a
window sill and broadcasts to the inside of the building plus outside the building
for 100 meters or further. [68]
Defunct brands and Networks[edit]
Common Cents Mobile[edit]
Common Cents Mobile logo.gif
Sprint Nextel began offering pre-paid wireless products and services via wholly
owned MVNO Common Cents Mobile on May 13, 2010.[69] Sprint Nextel intended these
products and services as a lower-cost alternative, charging $.07 per minute for
voice calls with round-down timing and $.07 per text message. The products and
services were initially available through Walmart stores; Sprint Nextel had planned
to expand the distribution of Common Cents Mobile to other outlets, but never did.
[70]
On May 18, 2011, Sprint Nextel discontinued operating its Common Cents Mobile pre-
paid brand, on the basis it was a duplicate of the offerings of the Virgin Mobile
USA PayLo brand. Common Cents Mobile customers were transitioned to a Virgin Mobile
payLo service plan that allowed the former Common Cents Mobile customers to keep
their existing $.07 per minute rate.[70][71][72]
Nextel Direct Connect[edit]
Sprint Nextel decided to decommission the iDEN (Nextel National) network it had
acquired after merging with Nextel Communications in order to repurpose the network
for LTE coverage; Sprint stopped offering Nextel Direct Connect walkie-talkie
service. Instead, Sprint persuade many of its customers into their replacement
service - Sprint Direct Connect which operates on the CDMA network.
CLEAR[edit]
Main article: Clearwire
CLEAR was the brand of mobile broadband services offered by Clearwire Corporation,
which was acquired by Sprint Nextel in July 2013. The brand provided mobile and
fixed wireless broadband communications services to retail and wholesale customers
in Belgium, Spain and the United States. Sprint ended the CLEAR brand in September
2013 shortly after it closed its acquisition of Clearwire, and it no longer offers
CLEAR branded products and services to new customers.[73]
Discontinued Networks[edit]
iDEN network[edit]
Sprint Nextel operated an iDEN nationwide network in the 800 and 900 MHz SMR
frequency band. Sprint Corporation acquired the iDEN network as a result of its
merger with Nextel Communications in 2005. The iDEN network was originally deployed
as a dispatch radio service and is unique in blending the half-duplex push-to-talk
one-to-many broadcast capability of a walkie talkie with the one-to-one private
communication of a phone. Sprint later marketed "push-to-talk" services under the
Nextel Direct Connect name.
In October 2010, as part of the "Network Vision" plan, Sprint CEO Dan Hesse
announced the decommissioning of the iDEN network to reduce costs, improve the
coverage and performance of the 3G CDMA network and enable Sprint Nextel to focus
on 4G LTE technology. Sprint Nextel announced on May 29, 2012, that it will stop
marketing iDEN devices in the third quarter of 2012 and that the iDEN network could
be completely decommissioned "as early as June 30, 2013".[74] As of June 5, 2012,
Sprint and Boost Mobile ceased offering iDEN devices, removing the devices and
their associated service plans from the Sprint and Boost Mobile websites and retail
locations. The Nextel national network was shut down on schedule at 12:01am on June
30, 2013.
Radio frequency range Band number Generation Radio Interface Status
800 MHz ESMR N/A 2G iDEN Decommissioned
900 MHz ESMR[75][76] N/A 2G iDEN Decommissioned
WiMAX[edit]
Sprint Corporation operated a 4G WiMAX network in the 2.5 GHz band, which had been
operated by Clearwire Corporation before it was acquired. Sprint also provided its
prepay partners Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile access to data services via the
WiMAX network; including other Mobile virtual network operators under wholesale
agreements.
Sprint Nextel had won rights to radio spectrum in the 2.5 GHz band to provision
fourth generation services and began to build out a WiMAX network, offering
services under the Xohm brand. However, on May 7, 2008, Sprint Nextel announced it
would merge its WiMAX wireless broadband unit with Clearwire Corporation, receiving
equity in Clearwire in return. The two companies completed the transaction on
November 28, 2008.[77] Sprint became the owner of Clearwire, after outbidding Dish
Network for the company.
On October 8, 2008, Sprint Nextel launched WiMAX in Baltimore and showed off
several new laptops that will have embedded WiMAX chips. They announced that Sprint
will be offering dual-mode 3G/4G products by the end of the year. Baltimore was the
first city to get Xohm, but it was launched soon after in more cities, such as
Chicago and Philadelphia.[78]
On April 19, 2011, Sprint Nextel announced it agreed to pay at least $1 billion to
Clearwire so it can operate on the 4G WiMAX network through 2012, and a later
agreement, announced in December 2011, specified terms allowing Sprint, its
subsidiaries, and wholesale customers to continue having access to the Clearwire 4G
WiMAX network through 2015. On July 9, 2013, Sprint Nextel acquired the remaining
stock shares it did not already own in Clearwire and its assets.
Sprint Corporation is working on migrating WiMAX customers to LTE compatible
devices in order to begin transitioning the WiMAX bands to TDD LTE. In July 2013,
Sprint announced its first tri-band products capable of accessing TDD-LTE data
connections in the 2.5 GHz band still used for WiMAX.[79]
Sprint planned to shut its WiMAX network on November 6, 2015, however an emergency
injunction was granted by a judge of the Massachusetts Superior Court on November 5
to keep the WiMax network online for another 90 days, due to the ongoing lawsuit
from non-profit groups. The groups, Mobile Beacon and Mobile Citizen, said that the
network shutdown violates the contract which requires Sprint to provide high-speed
internet services for low-income families and public institutions, as most of the
equipment was still not LTE-compatible. Sprint pledged to provide upgrades to the
equipment and work out a solution with the groups as soon as possible. Most of the
WiMax network not running in the affected areas was shut down.[80] On February 1,
2016, the same court declared that Sprint can proceed with the network shutdown in
the remaining 75 cities. Sprint took the network of 16 cities, including New York
City, offline on February 2, and closed 39 more on February 29. On March 31, the
last 25 cities' networks were shut down.[81]
Controversies[edit]
Device unlocking[edit]
Except devices launched on or after February 15, 2015, Sprint does not authorize
the use of GSM-capable devices, including both phones and tablets it sells, on a
United States-based competitor's network, such as T-Mobile or AT&T.[82] Unlike the
aforementioned companies, which have comparatively lenient policies about unlocking
phones, such as when the device is paid off or the contract is fulfilled, and
Verizon, whose GSM-capable devices ship with the GSM portion already unlocked,
Sprint will unlock devices for international use only for customers in good
standing after contacting customer support.[83]
This limitation means phones and tablets sold by Sprint which were launched prior
to February 15, 2015 will only lawfully function on the Sprint network, a policy
that prevents what may otherwise be compatibility with another carrier's network.
Additionally, the resale value of Sprint-sold iPhones generally are the lowest of
devices sold by the top four carriers in the country.[84] Means to unlock a GSM-
capable iPhone exist, such as using a SIM interposer, but the device may not
function fully or correctly on the desired network, and unlocking of the device had
been a violation of the law under the terms of the DMCA up until August 1, 2014
when President Obama signed into law a bill allowing the unlocking of cell phones.
[85]
Lack of SIM purchase options[edit]
Although with the launch of the LTE network, it is now technically possible to
bring many third-party devices, like Nexus 5 or Nexus 6, onto Sprint's LTE network
by simply inserting a provisioned SIM card from the carrier. Customers are able to
purchase SIM cards directly from some stores and some phone representatives,
provisioning is still being restricted to branded Sprint postpaid services and only
certain postpaid plans, and is completely unavailable for its prepaid plans and
brands like Virgin or Boost Mobile. Some MVNOs sell SIM cards for Sprint.[86][87]
As of December 2016, Sprint finally does have a web-page,
sprint.com/landings/bring-your-own-phone, purchasing a SIM card online is now
available, the only stores stocking cards are those with repair shop capabilities.
[88] Meanwhile, http://sprint.com/byod redirects to a business offering,[89] and a
generic BYOD/BYOP shortcut is not known.
Sprint remains the only of the four nationwide wireless carriers to not readily
offer SIM card sales, where even Verizon (which like Sprintand unlike AT&T and T-
Mobilehas neither GSM nor UMTS/HSPA+ networks) does make SIM cards readily
available since more than a year ago.[90]
FCC fine over Do Not Call rule breaches[edit]
In May 2014, the company was fined $7.5 million by the U.S. Federal Communications
Commission for failing to honor consumer requests to opt out of marketing messages
delivered by phone and text messages. Sprint was ordered to implement a
comprehensive two-year plan to comply with the commission's rules including
training of Sprint employees on how to comply with Do Not Call rules. American
consumers have had the option of nominating not to receive telemarketing calls and
texts since 2003, by placing their names on the National Do Not Call Registry.[91]
Law compliance[edit]
As required by law in the United States, in response to court orders and warrants,
Sprint Nextel provided law enforcement agencies with its wireless subscribers' GPS
locations over 8 million times in one year between September 2008 and October 2009.
[92] The disclosures occurred by way of a special, secure portal which Sprint
developed specifically for government officials, which enabled users to
automatically obtain Sprint customers' GPS locations after the request has been
reviewed and activated by Sprint's surveillance department.[citation needed]
Marketing[edit]
Social media[edit]
Ninja program[edit]
After Sprint merged with Nextel Communications, which was ranked by Bloomberg News
as one of the worst mergers for shareholder value,[93] Sprint implemented a social
media employee engagement program called "Social Media Ninjas" in order to improve
Sprint's reputation. Sprint Ninjas are employees who are trained to advocate for
Sprint's products and services in their personal online networks by posting content
and interacting with customers.[94] Sprint was awarded by the American Customer
Satisfaction Index as the most improved company in customer satisfaction from 2008
to 2012.[95][96]
Advertising[edit]
In 2016, Sprint began a major television advertising campaign promoting its
reliability as being within 1% of other major providers, such as Verizon. The
advertisements feature Paul Marcarelli, an American actor once known for pitching
Verizon with the phrase "Can you hear me now?" In the ads, Marcarelli notes that he
has switched to Sprint and touts pricing of approximately half that of other
providers, commenting "Can you hear that?" The ads feature the slogan "Don't let a
1% difference cost you twice as much."[97]
Sponsorships[edit]
Film[edit]
Sprint cellphones were product placed in such movies such as Men in Black II
(2002), The Departed (2006), Dan in Real Life (2007), Superbad (2007), Wild Hogs
(2007), 27 Dresses (2008), Baby Mama (2008), Beverly Hills Chihuahua (2008), Eagle
Eye (2008), The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008), Sex and the City (film) (2008), Alvin
and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel (2009), Bride Wars (2009), Transformers: Revenge
of the Fallen (2009), and The Gambler (2014).
Music[edit]
Sprint was the official wireless sponsor of the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards. Sprint
Power Vision customers were able to watch the VMAs on a live simulcast on their
Sprint Power Vision handset free of charge.
Sports[edit]
In Time Magazine's November 13, 2006 issue, Sprint Nextel's NASCAR FanView was
named One of Best Inventions of 2006.[98] The NASCAR FanView is a portable PDA that
runs on Sprint's data network. The device offers fans access to "Race telecast and
up to seven in-car camera channels, direct audio feeds allowing the user to listen
to live driver and team conversations, as well as the radio broadcast and an
exclusive audio-replay feature."
From 2008 to 2016, Sprint Corporation was the major title sponsor of NASCARs top
racing series, formerly called the NEXTEL Cup, which became known as the Sprint Cup
Series on January 1, 2008.[99] Since then, Sprint signed a contract extension with
NASCAR to continue sponsoring the series through the 2016 season.[100] Sprint was
replaced by Monster Energy after the 2016 season.[101]
Sprint Corporation holds naming rights to the Sprint Center in Kansas City,
Missouri.[citation needed]
Sprint Nextel announced in December 2011 that it reached a multi-year exclusive
partnership with the National Basketball Association (NBA) to be the league's
official wireless service partner.[citation needed]
Sprint was also a sponsor for the Copa Amrica Centenario in 2016.[102]
Television[edit]
Sprint was a sponsor of the Fox television series 24 and Fringe.
Sprint was a major sponsor of the NBC television series Heroes and provided
exclusive web content to subscribers. Sprint is also the mobile sponsor of NBC's
The Voice.
Sprint is a major sponsor of competition reality shows, such as Big Brother and
Survivor on CBS, enabling viewers to vote each week for "Player of the Game".
Viewers can text a vote for their selected contestant, and a randomly selected
participant who votes for the most popular player wins a cash prize.