Dear Verizon, Thank You!

It’s Super Bowl time, the ads are back … and something remarkable is happening in wireless. Verizon has just realized who the real network competition is. After years of ignoring T-Mobile, even leaving us out of coverage map comparisons (if you think back, you may remember TV ads from them where they did not even include us!). Now, Verizon’s spending big Super Bowl bucks to advertise JUST AGAINST T-MOBILE’S 5G NETWORK. Not just against T-Mobile as a brand… but actually trying to take on our network!  Something they never even cared about before! Why? Because they finally had to admit that we’re the real network competition, especially with the New T-Mobile. And they’re absolutely right.

I feel like I should celebrate. (Honestly, I am! And you should see @NevilleRay and his team!!) Verizon’s spending big bucks to tell people T-Mobile’s 5G network – the first and only nationwide 5G network – is the one to beat. That is INCREDIBLE! Should I write someone in their marketing team a check?

But, also, their ads are just sad. Big Red hired the talented, hilarious Jenny Slate (love you, Jenny!) to do some ‘man on the street’ interviews, comparing their 4G LTE network to T-Mobile’s 5G. That’s right, while the rest of the world has their eye on 5G, they want you to focus on 4G! Don’t get me wrong. 4G has transformed our lives, and we’ve been at the forefront of LTE innovation … but 5G is the future. Verizon has become the sad ex-high school quarterback who’s now living in his mom’s basement, trying to squeeze into that old letterman’s jacket and relive his heydays. “Hey, remember 4G? Remember, guys?” It’s honestly sad to watch.

Verizon is still wearing their LTE letterman’s jacket and living in the past. They peaked in 2007… We’re talking 5G and now they want to bring up LTE. #5GThatWorks pic.twitter.com/HpDt8jYlnT

— John Legere (@JohnLegere) February 1, 2020

Face it. Verizon peaked in 2007. And they’re terrified that people are catching on.

Where’d it all go wrong?

For years, Verizon was the platinum network. I’ll give them that. Then we got LTE and built a more modern, faster LTE network that could go neck and neck for 99% of Americans, but it’s been very much a battle.

Then, came this: Verizon bet wrong on the 5G future. They bet big on millimeter wave 5G, and that was a bad bet. It hasn’t scaled like they thought it would. So Verizon customers are forced to pay a premium for sad, spotty coverage in random parts of some areas of some cities. Just look at Hard Rock stadium in Miami. Big Red spent 80 million dollars to boost their spotty 5G in a single stadium. 80 MILLION for a few thousand square feet and it’s STILL hard to find a signal! Imagine if they tried to cover an entire city … or state … or even the whole country.

Some Verizon customer even created a petition to ban stadium standing. ud83dude09

Verizon bet wrong on 5G, and they know it. They’re stuck. They’re desperate … because really what is the Verizon brand except ‘network’? If they lose that, they’re toast.

Now they’re trying to advertise their way out of a crappy strategy.

While Verizon spends massive marketing budget trying desperately to relive their glory days and convince people their 5G is right, T-Mobile remains focused on the future. We already have 5G coverage they simply can’t match anytime soon - the ONLY nationwide 5G network which covers more than 1 million square miles and reaches over 200 million people. Unlike Verizon 5G that can get blocked by basically anything and covers spotty patches of outdoor areas in just 34 cities, T-Mobile 5G provides far-reaching coverage that can go through walls and works indoors and out … in more than 5,000 cities and towns all across the country. That’s about 147x more than Verizon. T-Mobile 5G is #5GThatWorks. Just ask Anthony Anderson’s mama.

Plus, we still have unused low-band spectrum to light up with 5G … and nationwide millimeter wave spectrum to add super-fast hotspot-like coverage in some areas. And we’re poised to give our customers a network Verizon can only dream of should the merger with Sprint move forward with spectrum that will add breadth and speed across the country. (I know they don’t want THAT to happen, because we’ll be an even tougher competitor then!) On top of all that … we’re not charging a dollar more for 5G access, which goes against everything Verizon stands for. Should I go on?

I say keep those ads coming, Verizon, I’m a big fan! And while you stay focused on what once was, at T-Mobile, we’ll keep facing the other direction — the future. Building the biggest and best 5G network in the country! And we won’t stop.

John Legere
T-Mobile CEO

 

 

 

 

 

 

Important Additional Information

In connection with the proposed transaction, T-Mobile US, Inc. (“T-Mobile”) has filed a registration statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-226435), which was declared effective by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on October 29, 2018, and which contains a joint consent solicitation statement of T-Mobile and Sprint Corporation (“Sprint”), that also constitutes a prospectus of T-Mobile (the “joint consent solicitation statement/prospectus”), and each party will file other documents regarding the proposed transaction with the SEC.  INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS ARE URGED TO READ THE JOINT CONSENT SOLICITATION STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS AND OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS FILED WITH THE SEC WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION.  The documents filed by T-Mobile may be obtained free of charge at T-Mobile’s website, at www.t-mobile.com, or at the SEC’s website, at www.sec.gov, or from T-Mobile by requesting them by mail at T-Mobile US, Inc., Investor Relations, 1 Park Avenue, 14th Floor, New York, NY 10016, or by telephone at 212-358-3210.  The documents filed by Sprint may be obtained free of charge at Sprint’s website, at www.sprint.com, or at the SEC’s website, at www.sec.gov, or from Sprint by requesting them by mail at Sprint Corporation, Shareholder Relations, 6200 Sprint Parkway, Mailstop KSOPHF0302-3B679, Overland Park, Kansas 66251, or by telephone at 913-794-1091.

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