Four months after completing a merger years in the making, T-Mobile has officially shut down the Sprint brand.
T-Mobile and Sprint pursued a merger for several years before finally coming to an agreement and receiving FCC and DOJ approval. Despite federal backing, a coalition of states filed a lawsuit to block the merger. After a judge ruled in T-Mobile’s favor, the merger moved forward with T-Mobile quickly integrating Sprint’s spectrum into its own network.
Now the company has officially retired the Sprint brand, unifying the two under the T-Mobile brand.
”Our team has been working night and day to combine our storefronts – and this is SO much more than just rebranding thousands of Sprint locations with a fresh coat of magenta paint,” writes CEO Mike Sievert. “This is about giving customers even MORE access to our expanded retail footprint, (one of the largest in the United States) and making it even easier and more convenient for them to safely drop in, chat with a Mobile Expert, make upgrades, get the latest deals, and reap the benefits from all that new T-Mobile has to offer! It was no small feat and is a testament to incredible teamwork all around the country. Today truly marks the beginning of a new era for T-Mobile, and for our customers.”
Sievert also took the opportunity to tout the company’s 5G plans, especially in comparison to the competition.
”It all starts with our people and of course our integration work – with major milestones like this one marking our way – and then it really comes to life with our 5G network that will surpass anything that anyone (yes, including Verizon) will deliver to the market for years! (Spoiler alert: we have another important network milestone coming up really soon… because Neville and his team are truly firing on all cylinders to bring 5G to even more people in more places, so stay tuned!). Trust me, we are going to bring new and better connectivity options to everything from major metros and urban cities to small towns and rural America!”
It remains to be seen what the network milestone is that Sievert is referring to. Given the amount of spectrum T-Mobile acquired with the merger, it’s a safe bet it’s probably something big.