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Faster & faster! The US now has 82.4 million broadband connections

Om Malik — Wed, 22 May 2013 00:18:32 +0000

Americans continue to spend big on their internet needs, and that is reflected in the robust demand for broadband during the first three months of 2013. Data collected by Leichtman Research Group, a Durham, NH-based market research company, shows that the top broadband providers in the U.S. added 1.1 million (net) new connections over that period, bringing the total number of broadband subscribers to about 82.4 million.

According to their research, cable companies have about 47.5 million broadband subscribers, while the remainder are with the phone companies. Cable companies added about 800,000 new subscribers, about 72 percent of the total for the month. The top two phone companies — AT&T and Verizon — saw a decline of 696,000 DSL accounts but added a total of 919,000 fiber subscribers. FIber-based broadband now accounts for about 40 percent of AT&T and Verizon’s total broadband customer base.

Bruce Leichtman, president and principal analyst for Leichtman Research Group, pointed out that typically the first quarter is better than the second and third quarters of the year, and “2013 began with another strong first quarter.” Net broadband additions in Q1 2013 were about 500,000 more than in Q4 2012, and that bodes well for rest of the year.

A resurgent housing market and stronger economy along with our growing need for speed and connectivity are the reasons why demand for U.S. broadband is booming. Here are some numbers to give you an idea as to who is winning and who is losing.

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AT&T to allow FaceTime, other video chat apps over cellular for all customers

Erica Ogg — Mon, 20 May 2013 21:19:57 +0000

AT&T on Monday said it plans to more broadly enable the use of Apple’s FaceTime for users over its cellular network in the next few weeks, and by year’s end plans to allow video chat apps use over its network by all customers. This latest position on FaceTime and similar apps represents total shift from its position almost a year ago.

AT&T’s statement to the Verge on Monday notes that “by mid-June, we’ll have enabled those apps over cellular for our unlimited plan customers who have LTE devices from [Apple, Samsung and BlackBerry].” Besides FaceTime, Samsung and BlackBerry’s pre-installed video chat apps will also be included.

And more will be coming for all of its customers before the end of the year: “Throughout the second half of this year, we plan to enable pre-loaded video chat apps over cellular for all our customers, regardless of data plan or device; that work is expected to be complete by year end.”

When Apple updated its mobile video chat app to work over cellular last summer, AT&T came under fire when it announced subsequently that only customers who subscribed to one of its Mobile Share plans could use it. Several open internet groups threatened to file complaints with the FCC, calling the carrier’s policy a violation of net neutrality. Several months later, AT&T opened the service to anyone with an LTE device.

Based on broadness of the statement, it sounds like video chat apps like Google’s new Hangouts app, which is available over AT&T’s cellular network now for some iOS customers, will work over cellular for Android customers later on this year.

This post was updated on 5/21 to clarify that the iOS version of Google Hangouts is available for use over cellular networks now.

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Report: AT&T to discontinue HTC First Facebook phone

Eliza Kern — Mon, 13 May 2013 19:52:11 +0000

Sales of Facebook’s HTC First phone have been disapointing so far, and not only has AT&T discounted the phone as we previously reported, the carrier has decided to discontinue the phone altogether, BGR reported Monday.

Facebook debuted both its Home on Android launcher and the HTC First about a month ago in early April, but by last week my colleauge Kevin Tofel reported that AT&T had dropped the price of the phone to 99 cents with a contract. Om’s full review of the HTC First can be found here.

While phone promotions are common, it didn’t seem like a vote of confidence for the HTC First sales, which have only totalled 15,000 so far, according to the report. Kevin wrote why it could be a challenge to get consumers to pick them up:

“It’s difficult enough for a high-end flagship phone to stand out from its peers, let alone a mid-range handset. Frankly, I can’t see how Facebook Home helps the HTC First differentiate itself enough; particularly when the software is already available for download on better phones and is expected to arrive on other handsets in the future. Sorry Facebook, I don’t think the market likes your attempt at a smartphone.”

Facebook declined to comment on the report and referred me to AT&T, which has not yet responded to requests for comment. BGR has uncorked some whoppers in the past, such as a 2012 report that Sprint would be getting the iPhone 5 exclusively, but this report makes sense given the lackluster interest in Facebook Home and this phone in particular.

Facebook’s Home on Android has also suffered from poor reviews, garnering only two stars in the Google Play store, although Facebook said last week that it was working on some improvements that would make the app more appealing for Android users.

Updated at 2:25 PM: An AT&T spokesperson provided us with this statement: “As mentioned previously, we do pricing promotions all the time and have made no decisions on future plans.”

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AT&T-owned AIO Wireless launches pre-paid and BYOD service, but no LTE

Kevin C. Tofel — Thu, 09 May 2013 14:12:57 +0000

You likely haven’t heard of AIO Wireless yet, but AT&T hopes you will soon. Launching Thursday in three cities, AIO Wireless is a pre-paid and BYOD, or bring your own device, service provider and is a subsidiary of AT&T. The pre-paid nationwide service is now available in Houston, Tampa and Orlando with expectations of opening stores in various U.S. markets over the next year. AT&T still has its own branded GoPhone pre-paid service.

I took a quick look at the new AIO Wireless (pronounced “A-O”) website and the plans remind me a bit of T-Mobile’s new Simple Choice offerings. There are just a few choices, and each advertises unlimited talk, text and data, although some of that data is at “high speed” while some is not. AIO will reduce or throttle speeds once you reach the limit for your specific plan.

For $40 a month, 250 MB of data is served at high speed while $55 each month bumps the fast data capacity to 2 GB. A $70 plan boost the fast data cap to 7 GB. You can pay $15 for a tablet to get on the data network but only get 250 MB of high speed service. The press release mentions “4G download speeds of up to 4Mbs”, so the company isn’t offering LTE. Adding an additional gigabyte of fast data service or international calling is available for $10 a month.

Handset choices are as expected for a pre-paid provider, ranging from $30 feature phones to $50 low-end smartphones all the way up to various iPhone models, both at reduced (refurbished) prices to $649.99 for a new iPhone 5. You can also check to see if your own device is supported — I’d be surprised if an AT&T-compatible phone weren’t — but if you have an LTE radio in it, it won’t be used.

It seems that the two largest U.S. carriers, AT&T and Verizon, are following suit when it comes to their expensive investments in LTE network upgrades: Keep the fastest services for those on contract. This helps recoup the investment faster by nudging high speed data users to generally more expensive monthly plans that practically guarantee an income stream for two years.

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Updated: Where are your five nines now? CenturyLink’s nationwide outage affects millions

Stacey Higginbotham — Tue, 07 May 2013 15:41:10 +0000

CenturyLink, the nation’s third largest telco network is experiencing an outage of its broadband service nationwide, leaving its support systems overwhelmed and even causing its website to hit a few snags this morning. The company, which at last count has 5.8 million broadband subscribers, has no estimates yet on how long it will take to restore service.

A spokeswoman confirmed the outage, but had few details:

“We are currently experiencing a disruption with our Internet service. We are working with our vendors to restore service as soon as possible and apologize for any inconvenience this has caused our customers. We will continue to work towards resolution until all issues are resolved.”

Earlier this year in January, AT&T experienced a substantial service outage affecting thousands of its customers, and lasting for a few days. The culprit in that outage was a software update that affected some, but not all of AT&T’s 7.4 million U-verse subscribers.

While power outages, fiber cuts and even software updates can take out a subscriber’s broadband for a bit, nationwide outages are rare. Maybe tomorrow on its earnings call, CenturyLink will explain what happened to cause this one. Meanwhile, a mobile hotspot or event a project like the recently launched BRCK, would come in handy right now for CenturyLink’s subscribers.

Updated 12:20pm: A CenturyLink representative said all service has been restored as of around midday Pacific Time.

Updated at 1:20 pm: CenturyLink said it has identified the cause of the outage as a problem with its core routers, but is investigating the problem further.

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First impressions of a new flagship, the LG Optimus G Pro for AT&T

Kevin C. Tofel — Mon, 06 May 2013 17:56:31 +0000

Last week, AT&T announced it is exclusively selling the LG Optimus G Pro for $199 with contract. The phone can be pre-ordered now and is expected to be available on May 10. I received an early review unit and have spent just a little time so far using the phone. A few things already stand out to me: LG is mimicking Samsung’s large phone approach — both with hardware and software — and those looking for a flagship phone will have to add the Optimus G Pro to their list of potential candidates.

I’ll have a full review forthcoming — I never review a phone without at least five days use for testing battery life and other reasons — but for now, here are my first impressions, in no particular order, followed a some images of the phone.

When I first removed the phone from the box, I thought I was sent the wrong phone. It appears nearly identical to the Samsung Galaxy Note 2, although LG’s new handset is roughly a quarter-inch narrower in width. And that small width shaving makes a big difference — for the better — when holding this phone.
Like the Note 2, the Optimus G Pro is all plastic and has a removable back cover. In all seriousness: If I didn’t see the LG branding on the top of the device, I would have sworn it was Samsung made.
The 5.5-inch 1080p display is excellent, easily rivaling those on the Galaxy S 4 and HTC One, both of which also have 1920 x 1080 resolution screens. There’s nary a pixel to be seen.
LG’s software is much improved over earlier efforts. Although this phone doesn’t run stock Android, LG’s skin is very minimal compared to similar phones. The home screens have a nice 3D effect: When swiping through them, everything on the display rotates around the left axis of the screen as if the icons and widgets were rotating around a flagpole.
Short of LG’s Tag+ NFC software and an IR remote control app, there are no other LG-specific apps. The same can’t be said of AT&T: I count at least nine bits of software from the carrier.
Similar to the Galaxy S 4, the Optimus G Pro has settings split up by four tabs. It’s not a confusing layout, but clearly the high-end Android phones are gaining more features that could add complexity. There are no hover gestures, but you can pause video by turning the phone over.
A quad-core 1.7 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 with 2 GB of memory powers the phone and for some reason it appears to perform a smidge better than the HTC One and Galaxy S 4 in my limited usage so far. I suspect the lack of a complex skin atop Android may be the reason, however, it’s too early to determine a performance winner.
I don’t mind a physical home button on Android phones although some do. The one on the Optimus G Pro isn’t my favorite though. I find it too small; it’s wide enough, but very thin. It does, however, have a nice LED ring around it with different colors for notifications and such. I also personally don’t like the placement of the two capacitive buttons: Back is on the left side of the Home button, while Menu is to the right. This may not bother others.
The phone comes with 32 GB of internal memory at this price; cheaper than the 32 GB Galaxy S 4. And you can expand it, unlike the HTC One, although some won’t have to. However, the total space available is 23.3 GB, which surprises me; I would have expected around 26 GB or so. Carrier bloatware, perhaps?
Like many new phones, the Optimus G Pro ships with Android 4.1.2. There is a bit of multitasking capability as some apps and widgets have a transparency slider. Use this and the app is see through so you can interact with other apps. Slide it back for the original app to regain focus.
Although there isn’t a stylus, the phone has a dedicated note-taking app called QuickMemo, which is available from the drop-down notifications shade. I almost wish there was a stylus because I don’t see many folks taking notes here with their fingers.
I haven’t taken many photos with the 13 megapixel rear camera yet. I did notice that there are only a few camera modes: Normal, HDR, Panorama, VR Panorama, Burst Shot and Beauty Shot. Perhaps that’s a good thing so consumers won’t get overwhelmed by a wider range of image modes.
It’s too early to determine battery life on a single charge. However, with a 3140 mAh battery, I’d be disappointed (and somewhat surprised) if this phone doesn’t easily last a full day for all but a very select number of power users.

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Guess who went public? T-Mobile completes MetroPCS deal

Stacey Higginbotham — Wed, 01 May 2013 15:05:14 +0000

T-Mobile USA began trading on the New York Stock Exchange Wednesday under the ticker TMUS, as its deal of more than $1.5 billion to combine with MetroPCS has closed. The newly combined company opened at $16.25.

Based on 2012 results, the combined company would have $24.8 billion of revenue and $2.7 billion of free cash flow. As of March of this year it has approximately 43 million subscribers. The deal terms were complicated including a 1 for 2 reverse stock split by MetroPCS, a cash payment of $1.5 billion to its MetroPCS stockholders and the proposed NewCo made up of T-Mo and MetroPCS acquiring all of T-Mobile’s capital stock from Deutsche Telekom in exchange for approximately 74 percent of MetroPCS’ common stock.

While the deal was approved by shareholders and regulators, the combined company still is trying to fight it out in a highly competitive and saturated mobile market. As my colleague Kevin Fitchard wrote when the deal was announced, this is a deal about beefing up T-Mobile’s spectrum so it can keep fighting Verizon and AT&T. Meanwhile Sprint, the nation’s third-largest carrier is in a deal of its own trying to buy Clearwire with cash provided by new partial owner Softbank.

It’s like a soap opera where everyone’s fighting for the airwaves. However, those fights are in the future, and today we just have to watch the stock and ponder what this means for the customer. Luckily, Fitchard already explained how this deal affects customers, so read that while you watch the stock.

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AT&T gets another exclusive: LG Optimus G Pro for $199 with contract

Kevin C. Tofel — Wed, 01 May 2013 14:20:06 +0000

On Wednesday, AT&T scored another smartphone exclusive. This time it’s the LG Optimus G Pro, an Android 4.1.2 handset boasting a large 5.5-inch, full high-definition screen. Pre-orders for the phone, which is $199 with contract, begin on May 3 and AT&T will sweeten the deal with a free Quick Cover folio case for the handset.

LG’s Optimus G Pro is the follow-up to the company’s Optimus G from last year. That phone was also very similar to the Nexus 4 that Google partnered with LG to design and build. As good as the Optimus G was — it has been one of LG’s best sellers to date — the new Optimus G Pro offers substantial upgrades including:

Qualcomm’s 1.7 GHz quad-core processor and 2 GB of RAM
Full 1080p resolution on the 5.5-inch display, which is 400 pixels per inch
A huge 3140 mAh battery, which should easily last a full day
Rear camera with 13 megapixel sensor and front-facing 2.1 megapixel camera
Internal storage of 32 GB with a micro SD expansion slot

Of course, the phone uses AT&T’s LTE network where coverage allows and falls back to HSPA+ service as needed. I’m not a fan of smartphone exclusives — here’s why — but this is another solid smartphone offering from AT&T that should rival its other flagship phones ranging from the Apple iPhone to Galaxy S 4 and HTC One.

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CenturyLink gets gigabit fever … in Omaha

Stacey Higginbotham — Wed, 01 May 2013 14:07:40 +0000

CenturyLink, the nation’s third-largest telephone company, has decided to get join Google, AT&T and several municipalities and get gigabit fever as well. The company will offer a fiber-to-the-home, gigabit network in Omaha, Neb. beginning next week, with service to reach all of the Omaha CenturyLink subscribers in October.

CenturyLink is upgrading its existing fiber architecture in west Omaha using GPON and will serve homes and businesses. Residential customers can bundle the gigabit speeds with existing video and voice service for $79.95 or subscribe to standalone service for $149.95. CenturyLink competes against Cox Cable in Omaha, which offers a 150 Mbps service.

This is a pilot project for the telco, and will cover its 48,000 customers in Omaha. When I asked CenturyLink why it was upgrading to a gigabit, a spokeswoman emailed the following:

CenturyLink needed to upgrade its existing fiber architecture in Omaha and wanted to create a more robust network that delivers fiber optic cable directly to homes and businesses. …We will evaluate our 1 Gbps offer to determine further deployment of this advanced technology.

Better broadband = More innovation

As a broadband reporter with a passionate belief that more broadband is better for our society and our ability to innovate, I’m thrilled to see more and more companies testing the waters on speed upgrades.

When Google launched its roll-out plans to build out a gigabit network in Kansas City, it showed that it was willing to enter a capital-intensive business in order to protect its access to the consumer. At that time, ISPs were implementing caps and making a lot of noise about bandwidth hogs and the cost to upgrade networks for people watching video over the top.

Yet, after Google announced Austin, Texas in April as its second location for Google Fiber, AT&T issued a press release saying it too wanted to use Google’s tactics to lay fiber to the home in Austin. It remains to be seen if AT&T takes those steps, but it’s great to see AT&T considering it. A week after Austin, Google said it purchased the fiber network in Provo, Utah (it apparently cost Google $1) and planned to turn on a gigabit network later this year. In Kansas City, Google charges $70 for gigabit-only service and $120 for a gigabit plus TV.

Municipalities and smaller telcos are also getting in the game. Last Friday I covered Vermont’s telco, VTel, and its existing gigabit network that residents can connect to for $35 a month. In a talk with the CEO of VTel, he told me that the he thinks that gigabit fiber is the only way to bring residents and his business into the future. But his $151 million investment costs were offset by $94 million in government loans and grants.

Meanwhile, Century Link isn’t totally throwing its conservative talking points to the wind. In the release announcing the gigabit construction it added a note of caution:

The company will evaluate its Omaha 1 Gbps offer before determining further deployment of this advanced technology, considering such factors as positive community support, competitive parity in the marketplace and the ability to earn a reasonable return on its investment.

I’m curious about all of those things myself. If a traditional telco can invest in gigabit networks and charge a fair rate for them, then I’ll expect to see them pop up in more places. And not just in places targeted by Google.

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AT&T kicks off trade-in program, offers $100 or more credit for used smartphones

Kevin C. Tofel — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 19:35:51 +0000

Thinking of upgrading to the latest smartphone? Sprint is already offering a $100 smartphone credit if you port your number to the network, but AT&T appears to be fighting back. The carrier announced a new AT&T Trade-In Program on Tuesday. Starting on May 1, you can turn in an old smartphone and get at least a $100 credit towards your next smartphone, effectively cutting in half the up-front contract price of a Samsung Galaxy S 4, entry level Apple iPhone 5 or HTC One.

AT&T says you’ll get a minimum credit of $100 and if the phone is worth more, it will increase the credit accordingly. Once the smartphone is turned in and evaluated, customers can use the credit immediately in three ways: “towards an accessory purchase, apply it to an existing bill, or even donate it to AT&T’s charitable cause Cell Phones for Soldiers.” As long as the phone is no more than three years old and in good working condition, AT&T will accept it. (Maybe I’ll dig out my old Palm Pre!) According to an AT&T representative, it will even take phones from other carriers.

These deals reinforce that the cellular market is all about the services and ongoing revenue per user. Carriers generally don’t make money on hardware sales unless contract customers continue using their hardware after the contract period. T-Mobile is the exception to that rule, having branded itself the “uncarrier” and by separating the cost of hardware and services: Once you pay your hardware off with T-Mobile, your monthly bill is reduced to just the service plan.

I won’t say that AT&T just completely trumped Sprint’s $100 deal, but it’s likely going to take the wind of Sprint’s promotion. AT&T currently has LTE service in far more areas than Sprint. And even better — if you use AT&T’s network, that is — fallback service drops to HSPA+ which can be nearly as fast as LTE. Sprint’s fallback outside of LTE is EV-DO service, topping out around 1.5 Mbps.

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